


Lost Souls Reaching

by GoldenPaws



Series: The Chains That Bind Us [9]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Child Death, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Fenrir/Sato is a mess, Hurt Loki (Marvel), Hurt/Comfort, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Implied/Referenced Torture, James "Rhodey" Rhodes & Tony Stark Friendship, Loki (Marvel) Feels, Loki (Marvel) Needs a Hug, Loki and Thor Are Not Related, Loki is a mess, Odin (Marvel)'s A+ Parenting, Sad, The Avengers (2012) - Freeform, Thor is trying, Tony Feels, Tony Stark Does What He Wants, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, Tony Stark is also a mess, but mostly failing, but not really just assumed, but who needs sleep anyway, not a huge surprise there
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-12
Updated: 2020-04-19
Packaged: 2021-03-02 03:06:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 43,054
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23617978
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GoldenPaws/pseuds/GoldenPaws
Summary: Sato listens, and he hopes, and he clings to the pain still raging through his body, to the thrumming in his heart and stumbling in his pulse. To the same beloved humming that used to soothe him to sleep, all those centuries ago, when he was nothing more but a tiny pup, falling asleep in his fathers safe warm embrace. A sound he has been missing for such a long, long time, ever since he left Asgard and fell into this realm. And now, after all this time...It’s back.
Relationships: Loki & Tony Stark, Loki/Natasha Romanov, Pepper Potts/Tony Stark, Tony Stark & Avengers Team, Tony Stark & Fenrir/Sato
Series: The Chains That Bind Us [9]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1477469
Comments: 38
Kudos: 75





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry it took me so long to post again. Real life mostly suck right now, so let's hide in the fandom until the worst is over. Hope you're all healthy and as happy as can be during these difficult times!
> 
> Comments and kudos are greatly appreciated!
> 
> Love,  
> Goldie

It’s back.

Sato wakes with a start, trembling from head to paw. Where, where, where is it? His ears twitch from side to side, back and forth, nose greedily inhaling the air, for a hint, just one small hint... The wolf growls as he struggles onto his paws, a shuddering running through his entire body. Where, where where, where is it coming from, where is--

A jolt flashes through him, and the air gets pushed out of his lungs, leaving him breathless for a small eternity. He’s floating, and then he’s crashing, crumbling to the ground. There is something, something is coming, coming here, and he feels it, feels it deep inside of his bones, makes them vibrate and move under his skin. Feeling as though they might crawl through his flesh, burst through his muscle and skin and leave him completely. His body seems to be singing, crying out, shaking and pushing and pulling, and he curls into himself when something- Something awakens in his heart. Something hot, a small fire than burns in his veins and heats up every single inch of his very being. He’s panting by now, fighting for every single breath, as his vision starts to cloud. There it is, there is again - A song. An achingly familiar song, humming in his very flesh and blood, and Sato lets out a whimper, closing his eyes as his ears get flooded with this sound, this music, this- _Something_ he won’t even dare to name, for fear of losing it again. He can’t- He can’t lose it! Not now, when it’s been gone for so, so long. And even if it sounds disjointed, even if it doesn’t sound as it used to, has lost its softness and bright vibrations and soothing quality, it is undeniably the same. He groans when it pushes closer, sinks into his bones and makes them heavy, and he shakes his head, trying to clear his mind. It can’t be, it can’t be, it can’t... And yet it is.

Then the pain hits him. Sato didn’t anticipate it, and now it washes over him, drowning him. It tears at his heart, as if someone wrapped a piece of string around his heart and is now pulling with all his might. He feels the entire organ shudder, feels his pulse stumble and even stop for a few moments, leaving him gasping and shaking and stumbling. It makes him feel weak, cold and alone as he tries to keep his balance. In the end, he crashes to the ground only a few seconds later. There’s a ringing in his ears, and he is rather sure he can hear JARVIS’ voice, but he can’t be sure. Panting, he tries to shake the feeling, tries to fight through the burning sensation in his chest, tries to stay conscious and remember that it can’t be true, even if his aching heart is telling him otherwise.

_Father..._

The thought is more painful than the agony currently raging in his heart, but he can no longer suppress it. He is too weak, too desperate, too _lonely_! Sato hasn’t dared to even think about his father much in the last few weeks, yet here it is--

_Father... Father... Father... Father, please!_

Sato cries out, and a moment later he is howling. It’s a call for help, begging for his father to come and find him! But it can’t be... Father is far away, and he won’t be coming. Yet the strings tighten, and Sato whines, sagging and falling to the ground. His entire body is pounding in the rhythm of his aching heart as he lays there, panting. It’s strange, because this is something familiar, something he has known since the moment he was born. It’s the tether that binds him and his father, connects them throughout the realms. His line of hope, the only thing he used to cling to back on Lyngvy, when his thoughts grew too dark to see anything but the loneliness and the fear. Something more natural than breathing, than his very own heartbeat, something he has cherished for as long as he can think. It has weakened, of course, ever since he landed in this new, terrifying realm, to a point where Sato sometimes came awake with a start, thinking he’d lost it after all. But it was always there, weak and quiet, but still there, and only when he’d felt that gentle tug again was he able to go back to sleep But why is so very different--

The pain only gets worse, as something dark, something twisted enters his mind. The wolf tries to shy away from it, tries to shake his head and rid himself of the poison he can feel entering his body, his thoughts, his very heart. Poison, bitter and sour, hot and disgusting is already coursing through his brain, and he can feel it clouding his vision. A dark voice, and fear, never ending fear makes him tremble. The thought of fire and metal, tearing through his flesh, breaking his bones, somewhere in the darkness, and a voice, a voice that makes him whimper and cower and bag for mercy...

_Father... Father, where are you... Father, please.... Father, help me, help me!_

No one comes, no one answers. Except for JARVIS, but Sato can’t bring himself to listen as he drown in the pain and fear and desperation, and he knows it’s not his own, but that only makes it so, so much worse. It’s his father, his father who is so very scared, terrified, even, and in pain, and- Alone? Where is he, where has he gone... Sato wants to get up and run, run far, far away, and start searching all of the nine realms if he needs to! He’ll follow that tug, follow his burrowed agony, until he finds his father, and then and then and then--

But he is too weak to even get up, let alone leave this very room. He can only lie there, panting, as JARVIS keeps talking, and that ugly ringing sound persists and makes him flinch. His body is shaking, his heart stumbling, his skin feels feverish and as though there are countless insects crawling over it, into it, under it. The poison is wrecking his mind, dark thoughts blooming in his skull, and he cries out again, if only to hear something beside that dark, dangerous voice chuckle in his ears, making him feel as though he is drowning in desperation.

_Father, please don’t leave me... Please, please save me... Don’t give up, father, please don’t give up... Don’t leave me here to die!_

Sato feels as though he is dying, truly. Worse than before, when he first came here, all cut open and broken apart. He was ready to die, then, but he isn’t ready now. He wants to fight, to bare his teeth and growl, but he can’t the fear is paralyzing him, pinning him to the ground, liquifying his bones and burning his muscles to ash. Hopeless, useless, helpless...

_Father! Father! Father!_

No answer, no answer, no answer. He is still alone, with JARVIS’ voice droning over him, and he wants the ghost to be quiet, wants to listen to the agony, and maybe understand why it makes him feel better than the emptiness he experienced just minutes before. His father... His father, what is happening to his father... Sato whimpers, tries to howl once again, to call for help, but no sound comes out of his maw. Shuddering, he feels his mind grow heavy, and no matter how much he fights against it, he passes out just moments later.

“Hey. Hey, buddy. Wake up, Sato! C’mon, wake up!”

The wolf shudders, his ears twitching at the familiar voice. His heart is clenched tightly, his muscles sore and heavy, skull filled with fog and smoke. It takes him a moment to understand that the pain has lessened. Only a little bit, but he no longer feels as though he is burning alive. He is not dying, but only just.

“Sato. Hey, Sato, you’re- You’re kinda scaring me.”

Yes, the voice. He knows this voice, and it pulls him towards the surface, struggling to open his eyes and blink a couple of times. Tony is looking at him, brow furrowed and eyes dark, but they brighten once they meet his. Sato can feel the tension seep out of the man’s body, and he feels his body give in just the same. But the pain keeps him from relaxing, tearing at his heart once again, and he flinches violently. The poison, the agony, it comes rushing back the longer he’s awake, and the fear seeps into his bones, grinding them to dust.

“There you are. You feeling alright there? JARVIS told me you had a pretty rough night.”

Night? Is it morning again? Sato has lost count, and he doesn’t care. The burning is back, and the moment Tony grows quiet, that dreadful voice fills his head again. Heat, and fire, and blades cutting into his flesh, and he can almost smell the blood run through his fur, drenching the floor. But there is nothing. It’s all in his head, which makes it all the more terrifying. Shuddering, he struggles to roll onto his front, pressing his head into Tony’s chest, breathing in the man’s familiar scent. It calms him, but only a little bit, while his heart is still stumbling, and his ears are ringing with the sounds of flesh being cut off the bone...

“Hey, easy, buddy. JARVIS, I want a complete scan. Find out what’s wrong with our wolf, and find it out yesterday!”

_Of course, sir._

“Good. Don’t worry, wolfie”, Tony murmurs now, turning back to Sato as he brushes his hands through the wolf’s fur, “we’re gonna help you. Whatever’s wrong with you, we’ll fix it. I promise.”

Sato knows that Tony isn’t lying, but he also knows that the man won’t be able to solve this problem. There is no way to carve the poison from his veins, and he finds himself gagging at the thought, since it would cost him the only connection to his father he has left. Sighing, Tony cards his hands through Sato’s fur in an attempt to soothe him, and the wolf tries to let it happen. Yet the trembling won’t stop, and he still feels disgustingly cold, aching all over. Still exhausted after the night he has had, Sato allows his eyes to slip shut, pushing just a little closer to Tony, which earns him a small chuckle.

“Yeah, you just close your eyes, get some rest. ‘M gonna stay here, and take care of you, don’t you worry. ‘S all gonna be okay again, I promise.”

Sato listens, and he hopes, and he clings to the pain still raging through his body, to the thrumming in his heart and stumbling in his pulse. To the same beloved humming that used to soothe him to sleep, all those centuries ago, when he was nothing more but a tiny pup, falling asleep in his fathers safe warm embrace. A sound he has been missing for such a long, long time, ever since he left Asgard and fell into this realm. And now, after all this time... It’s back.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Second chapter, yay! More stress and angst, so yeah. I'll try and update again tomorrow, and this work shouldn't have much more than 4-5 chapters, and then we'll move a little forward in time :) Hope you enjoy, comments and kudos are greatly appreciated!
> 
> Love,  
> Goldie

_Sir, project Ruff Stuff is showing signs of over heating._

Tony just about manages to suppress the annoyed groan that he wants to let out. Great, just fucking awesome! Here he is, holding the most fascinating piece of information he has possible _ever seen_ , and even though he won’t show Coulson how excited he is, how he can’t _wait_ to get fucking started, right now is about the worst possible moment for an interruption like this. Pepper has already excused herself, and while Tony knows she doesn’t mind, that she understands because this is apparently _Top Secret_ , and very much _Super Spies_ and possibly has to do with saving the world or some other shit, he also knows that she won’t be as lenient when he excuses himself in a few minutes to check up on _Project Ruff Stuff_.

“Uh, yeah. Do something about it, will you, J?”, he mutters, eyes still glued to the data he has just been handed, hoping that JARVIS will be able to defuse the situation.

_Certainly, sir. Though it seems your interference might be needed._

“At least give it try, dear, daddy’s kinda busy.”

_As you wish._

He can tell that JARVIS thinks it’ll be useless, but he’s not programmed to argue with his creator over things like this. Not when it comes to this particular project. Coulson hasn’t said anything so far, and Tony’s mind is already running a hundred miles an hour, calculating, devising some experiments he just _has_ to set up _right this very second_ \--

_Sir, project Ruff Stuff’s status is not improving--_

“Yeah, yeah, still kinda busy”, Tony murmurs with a frown.

Pepper is still busying herself in the kitchen, and Coulson shows no signs of leaving yet, which is a real shame, because there’s actually no real reason for him to stay any longer than is strictly necessary. And how the fuck has the man not figured this out by now?

_Sir, your interference seems to be--_

“YEAH!”, Tony growls, setting the file down with a bit more force than advisable and glaring at the ceiling, “I heard you the first fucking time! And I’m still busy! So get that circuit board of yours moving and figure it out! I’ll be down in just a sec, so shut the hell up for now!”

There’s silence for a few seconds, and Tony knows all eyes are on him. He usually doesn’t mind, but right now it’s anything but pleasant. Pepper hasn’t heard him talk like this to JARVIS before, and Coulson- Well, fuck Coulson, anyway.

_Certainly, sir. I won’t disturb you anymore._

“Good. Don’t say a word unless the lab’s in fucking pieces.”

The AI doesn’t answer, but it’s an agreement nonetheless. Tony huffs a breath and goes back to reading, even though he’s worked his way through the file three times already. It’s amazing, really, there is no other word for it. The most amazing thing he has ever laid eyes on, and that’s saying something. After all, he’s got a mirror, and enjoys looking at his devilishly handsome face about five times a day. But this- This even beats himself.

“Magnificent”, he finally breathes with a sigh, only to remember that Coulson actually heard that, which was so not part of the plan.

The agent is smiling at him when he looks back up, though it looks a bit pinched and tense - Although those adjectives could be used to describe Coulson as a whole as well. Never seems to relax, that guy. Tony strongly believes he never even takes that suit off. And has spent some time during a boring meeting picturing the guy swimming in a pool, getting weighed down by said suit. It was one of the better days spent in the office.

“Indeed. So, would you be interested in--”

_Sir, I am very sorry, but there appears to be a serious risk for damage--_

“YES, I AM COMING!”

Oops. He didn’t mean to shout. Coulson frowning, now, and Pepper’s still watching him, hand outstretched to hand the guy a drink Tony most certainly did not approve of. Breathing heavily, he closes up the program that’s been shining right in front of him, hands curling into fists as he tries to calm himself down. It’s not working, of course, but he’s got to try. And he knows that being this angry and agitated will only make everything so much harder, but fucking hell- He’s only human! And he happens to be really fucking pissed!

There’s a moment of awkward silence, and then Pepper, bless her beautiful soul, smiles and nods towards the elevator.

“How about we agree on this one being for the road?”, she asks, handing Coulson his drink, “I’ll show you out. Tony’s still got some business to attend downstairs.”

Coulson agrees readily enough, and Tony watches them leave, already talking amiably as they step into the elevator. The air leaves his lungs in a heavy sigh when the doors slide shut, and he takes a moment to wipe a hand over his face, pinching the bridge of his nose. If there was anyone else but him who could handle this, he’d tell that person to handle it right now, and then proceed to knock back all those drinks Pepper and he were supposed to have by himself. Screw the effort he’s been making to steer clear of the harder stuff, because this is pushing him to his absolute limits! But as it is, there is no one else around who could handle any of this- Hell, Tony’s pretty sure he’s about the only person on the entire planet equipped to even remotely handle this shit show, and he’s anything but qualified, too. Taking another deep breath, he slowly lifts his head and looks out the massive glass front, towards New York.

“Status update, J.”

_Certainly, sir. Sato has shown signs of agitation ever since Agent Coulson entered the building. His stress level has been building up steadily over the last few minutes. He has also sent out exactly seventeen distress signals, and seems to eagerly be awaiting your return. As of now, he is pacing through the lab, though I anticipate he might start searching for a way out of the room in approximately four and a half minutes._

Great. Just motherfucking great. Rationally, Tony knows he can’t really blame the giant wolf for its distress and apparent desperation. Emotionally, though, he’s feeling annoyed, because this night was not supposed to be about his secret room mate, and more about him and his girlfriend celebrating a big win. That won’t happen now, because Coulson had to show up, and even if that hadn’t happen, Tony has a feeling that Sato would’ve disturbed them, either way.

“Yeah, alright. I’m coming.”

He trudges towards the elevator with a sour taste in his mouth, and doesn’t bother to hurry the fuck up. There’s no real reason to worry about his lab - Experience has shown him that Sato never takes his frustration out on his equipment, experiments, suits or other stuff he stores down there (apart from his arrival, of course, but that was most likely unintentional). No, the wolf doesn’t touch anything Tony owns and values, but that doesn’t mean he won’t do any damage down there.

Tony shudders as he thinks back to that very special day less than a week ago, when he chose to ignore JARVIS’ urgent call about the wolf’s status. He was too busy testing out those new stabilizers, aching to get out of the Tower and go on a longer flight, and so he had decided to mute any of those messages and just enjoy himself for a little while. When he came back, he went straight down to the lab - And almost fainted when he saw what had happened. Yes, his equipment was still undamaged, but the rest of the lab was completely thrashed. Sato has torn apart most of his blankets, as well as the last few moving boxes he hadn’t gotten thrown out yet, shredded the futon Pepper had gifted him with a knowing smirk and a kiss to the cheek (the last one had been taken apart when things were still a lot easier, and isn’t that a weird perspective to have?) and upended the few tables and shelves that didn’t contain priceless equipment and tools Worst of all were the walls, though. Tony hadn’t known that one of the sturdiest materials known to man could be scratched up like that. But Sato ended up proving him wrong. The wolf’s claws and teeth had left deep scratches and holes in the walls, and the door had been dented. JARVIS later showed him video footage, and apparently the wolf thought it’d be a good idea to charge at the walls, try to claw through them, and smash his head against the door in a desperate attempt to get out. Yeah, that wasn’t a good day.

The elevator reaches the floor on which the lab is located why too soon, and Tony has to close his eyes and just breathe for just a few seconds after the doors slide open. Steeling himself for what’s about to come, he blinks his eyes open again and steps out of the elevator. No, he isn’t looking forward to this. Thanks to the blackout mode (which has to keep running constantly by now, because he’s worried someone might actually hear all that noise, even a few floors up), he hears absolutely nothing. Doesn’t mean anything, of course, and he knows all too well. Doesn’t make stepping inside any easier, but he knows he’s got no choice.

“Open up, J”, he mutters with a sigh, and the doors slide open.

It’s chaos inside, but it stops the moment he steps inside. He’s got about a moment to steel himself before Sato races over. It’s- A lot different than it used to be. Just a few weeks ago, the wolf used to run over and crash right into him, taking him down and covering his entire face with slobber. Now, he- He doesn’t do that anymore. Instead, Sato almost _crawls_ over, body close to the ground, tail tucked between his hind legs as comes closer. No excitement, no happy yipping, no jumping around. Instead, the wold is letting out a constant whine, high pitched and anxious, and it doesn’t even stop when he presses his flank against the engineer’s front, effectively covering him from head to toe, even crouching down as he is. Even though he feels more like turning around and running away (back to Pepper, back to the _drinks_ ), Tony only lets out a small sigh and gently pats the wolf’s shoulder.

“Hey, buddy. Bad day, huh?”

There’s no answer, not even any acknowledgement, which used to be unusual, but no longer is. Sato’s eyes are darting through the lab, and he’s panting heavily, tongue hanging out of his maw, saliva dripping down onto the floor. Every other second, he lets out a distressed whine, and Tony feels the animal tremble heavily under his hand. Not good, really not good.

“How about we sit down, then? C’mon, let’s get comfy, wolfie.”

Sato follows him through the lab, still looking around anxiously, his shoulder pressed against Tony’s side. The engineer settles down on the pile of blankets where Sato usually sleeps. He has replaced most of the blankets already, and the wolf follows him down easily enough, curling into himself. His ears are pulled back and twitching every couple of seconds, and he’s still panting. Tony suppress yet another sigh and cards a hand through the wolf’s soft-coarse fur, which doesn’t help much. No surprise there, either, because Sato... Well, it’s been a rough couple of days, to say the least.

“What’s happened this time?”

_The same pattern as the last few times, sir. Sato grew more and more distressed, displaying the same signs as before. Would you like to review the video footage?_

“No- No, I don’t that’ll be necessary”, Tony murmurs, leaning over to press a kiss to the wolf’s soft ear, which twitches in return.

No reaction, again, and Tony’s getting worried. He’s been worried for a while now, ever since Sato- Changed. That happened less than two weeks ago, and it was a pretty sudden shift. To this day, Tony can’t pin point what exactly happened, even though he’s instructed JARVIS with finding any possible solution, and when that didn’t work out, he took to browsing the web himself. Nothing so far, of course, and it’s disappointing even though Tony wasn’t all that hopeful to begin with. It’s not like there are all that many websites discussing the problems of nervous giant teleporting wolves, but it can never hurt to try.

“Think you could tell what’s gotten into you, huh?”, he whispers against the wolf’s forehead, and the animal lets out a small yip, nudging Tony’s chin with his cold nose.

No answer, of course, and Tony’s getting a little desperate. The only thing he can tell without a doubt is that Sato is stressed out, and extremely at that. Panting, salivating, the white in his eyes clearly visible, and that damn shaking that won’t stop at any time. It’s not something he can easily stomach, because he can tell that Sato’s getting pretty desperate, and nothing he’s been trying has worked so far. Physical contact isn’t even registered, his voice barely gets him a small twitch into his direction, humming and singing has about the same effect. JARVIS has been supplying with tips and tricks taken straight from the internet, and while Tony was more than a little doubtful, he was ready to try after three days of intense stress.

After two more days, he was ready to give up. Exercise was out of question (no way would he have gotten Sato into the moving truck in this state, and letting him out through the garage to roam the streets was an equally bad idea), physical contact was mostly ignored (although he still gets the feeling that Sato presses against him, into his touch, craving it. He’s probably just too anxious for it to really register). They tried massaging, too, but Sato would hold still, instead preferring to creep through the lab, looking as though someone was about to kill him any moment now. Tony even went so far as to try out music therapy, which was torture for him, because classic is so not his style, especially when it contains harps. JARVIS told him about calming coats and shirts, but they had to quickly abandon that idea, because of course the regular sizes wouldn’t fit the giant wolf. Last resort where different kinds of supplements, aromatherapy, diffusers... The smell made Sato sneeze and cough, and Tony wasn’t comfortable pumping his wolf full of apparently calming treats that contained whatever the fuck might help. So, here they are. None the wiser, and getting pretty frustrated.

“Coulson’s left, by the way. Though you probably already know, with those freaky ears of yours. But he’s gone. No danger whatsoever.”

No reaction, only another whine, and some lip licking. Another sign of stress, as Tony has learned. He sighs again and leans against the wolf’s head. The heavy panting makes it anything but comfortable, but he can’t bring himself to care. Carding a hand through the wolf’s fur, he gently tugs on a few tufts, but Sato simply stares ahead, saliva dripping onto Tony’s knee, already soaking through his pants.

“JARVIS told me you called. Sorry it took me so long to come down, I was- Busy. Date night, you know? Until Coulson interrupted, of course”, he adds with a small growl, frowning, “so, maybe it’s not even your fault that didn’t work out. I don’t blame you, okay? Probably can’t help feeling like this, anyway.”

And Tony knows it’s unfair to blame the wolf at all. After all, he happens to know a thing or two about stress, anxiety, anger and all that shit. He knows all too well that you can’t control shit like that, and yet- It’s difficult. Really, _really_ difficult, because he can’t _help_ Sato in any way, and even if the wolf is not to blame, it’s still hard to stay calm when confronted with this much _stress_. Might have to do with his own cracked mental state, and isn’t that just wonderful? Everything working out as usual.

“Might have to call you Uncle Rhodey soon. Think that’d help you, wolfie? Rhodey has a way of cheering you up, after all... Want him to come over for a visit? Bring some pizza?”

No reaction. Tony wishes he was surprised, but he no longer is. Sato hasn’t been eating for a while now, and has started to lose some weight. It’s not as bad as it was when the wolf came here the first time around, not by a long shot, but it’s still worrying. Even slapping a fresh, bloody piece of elk meat onto the floor right in front of the wolf hasn’t managed to pull him from his stupor. The freezer’s still filled to the brim, and Tony has stopped trying. Eating his own food in the lab and offering Sato a bite every few seconds hasn’t helped, either. It’s getting to a point where Tony is seriously debating asking Coulson (or even Fury, at this point) if they happen to know a vet that specializes in the care of giant animals. Might mean that SHIELD will step up and demand taking Sato with them, but- What if that’s the price he’ll have to pay for getting the wolf the help he desperately needs? And Tony knows he’d fight tooth and nail to get the wolf back, hell he’d even ask Rhodey to come along for the ride, and he knows his best friends would, without a moment of hesitation.

“No pizza? Maybe Chinese? Or just some chocolate? Just tell me, and I’ll get you whatever you want. Anything at all!”

Yeah, so Tony’s getting kinda desperate, too, sue him! But Sato doesn’t answer, either, only lets out another high pitched whine, one that cuts straight through Tony’s bones, down to his very core. He doesn’t like this, any of this! He doesn’t like feeling helpless, useless, incompetent and out of his depth - Especially when it comes to his wolf. Because he cares about Sato, and he doesn’t want to see him hurting. And that’s what’s happening here: Sato is hurting.

“Or maybe we’ll just keep on staring at nothing, stressing out”, he grumbles when Sato doesn’t react, doesn’t even turn to look at him, “sounds good, too,of course. Way better than having drinks with Pepper, and watching the sun rise over the New York skyline. Yeah, let’s just do that.”

He knows he’s being a bitter asshole, but he can’t help. Tony’s been feeling twitching himself. Since Sato hasn’t been himself for over a week, he doesn’t dare to leave the Tower for longer than an hour or two at the time. That was a fun thing to explain to Pepper (once again straining their rather fragile relationship a little more), and something that’s come to bite him in the ass more and more each day. No more flights in the suit, no more dates with Pepper, not even those dull meetings with... Whoever those suit-wearing penguins where who spent three hours boring him out of his mind. But he’d take those three hours over watching Sato pant and salivate and shake right next to him. There’s no more working, either, because he can no longer concentrate with the wolf falling apart in the same room, and sliding up the wall separating their areas only makes everything so much worse.

“Pepper back yet, J?”

_Miss Potts has decided to get back to her own apartment about ten minutes ago. She asked me to wish you a goodnight, and not to work too late._

Tony has to close his eyes at that, breathing deeply. He doesn’t deserve Pepper, he really doesn’t, but he’s not a good enough person to let her go and find someone who might actually make her happy.

“Fucking awesome. Hear that, wolfie? Pepper’s gone, so you have me all to yourself. Isn’t that great? Just like old times. Back when she’d run away from me, and the wreck I am.”

Again, he wishes he’d thought to bring a bottle of scotch or whiskey or literally _anything alcoholic_ downstairs with him. As it is, he curses Pepper for convincing him to throw out his secret stash, and himself for going along with it and not hiding away at least a single bottle. Yet another decision he regrets today.

Rhodey can’t be reached. Which is a shame, because Tony is in the mood for finally telling his best friend about the shit show he’s been trying to manage on his own for almost ten days now. He hasn’t done that so far, partly because he didn’t think it was such a big deal (he does now, though, and he regrets that naiveté a lot), partly because he was scared Rhodey would end up telling him it was time to call for reinforcement. Which would be SHIELD in this case, as much as it pains Tony to think about them this way. So, no talking to Rhodey. And no talking to Pepper, either, because he still hasn’t breathed a word to her, about any of this. He doesn’t plan on doing so, although neither Rhodey nor JARVIS are getting tired of explaining to him why exactly that’s a spectacularly bad idea. It’s not like Tony doesn’t know as it is. But how is he even supposed to start conversation? And how is he supposed to survive said conversation with both of his balls still attached to his body? No, it’s better to keep... _All of this_ under wraps for now. Tony still tells himself that he’ll come clean once he finds the right moment, because this is not something you can just spontaneously confess.

Dropping back down to the ground (he has taken to pacing along with Sato, and has to remind himself to fucking stop, because it’s not helping either of them), he drops back down onto the blankets, and watches his wolf. These days, Sato reminds him of those poor creatures you see in small enclosures at the zoo - Restlessly pacing from one corner to the next, never calming down, with wide, fearful eyes. It’s not a comparison he can think about without cringing, but it’s too obvious to ignore. Sato seems to have grown even more agitated for whatever reason, and Tony can’t do anything but watch him work off the excess energy, as much as he able to, at least. Fucking sucks, and he’d give a lot to just- Be back home. In Malibu. Where he’d simply open the garage door, and take his wolf down to the beach. Spend the night there, step into the cool water, splash some of it at Sato’s snout, and then lie on the warm sand and look at the stars.

“Kinda miss those nights. Do you, too? The stories I told you... Remember any of them? I mean, I pretty much told you everything I know, but I’m pretty sure you wouldn’t mind hearing them again. Won’t happen here, though. There’s no way we’d be able to see the stars here. Too much light, you know?”

Sato doesn’t react. He has lowered himself even closer to the ground, and is cowering in one corner of the wide room. Starts to yip and keen, and Tony cringes. It’s not just those sounds that have prompted him to keep black out mode activated 24/7. Sato has started to howl, mostly during the night, and while it’s- Beautiful, to say the least, it’s also a pretty sorrowful sound. Reminds him of something you’d hear at a funeral, desperate, sad and deeply distressing. Thankfully, the wolf “calms” after a few more minutes, and keeps up his panting and shaking. It’s sad to think that that’s their new normal. Remembering how it used to be makes Tony want to throw up, but he only shakes his head and gets up. Sato doesn’t look up, but he also doesn’t shy away when the engineer sits down by his side, gently petting the trembling flank.

“It’s gonna be alright, buddy. Whatever’s going on- It’ll be okay. And I’m here. I know, that doesn’t sound like much of an advantage, but- Yeah. I’m here. And I won’t leave you.”

There’s the tiniest stop in the shaking, and Sato’s eyes flick towards Tony for just a second. It’s more than he’s gotten in _days_ , and it’s enough to make him smile as he leans forward and rests his forehead against the wolf’s, which is accepted as well. And maybe, just maybe, he’s actually right this time around.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soooooooo.. Things are about to get to get interesting! Also, sorry in advance for the cliff hanger ^^ next chapter is already done, so it'll be up tomorrow!  
> As always, comments and kudos are greatly appreciated!  
> Hope you enjoy!
> 
> Love,  
> Goldie

The first thing Tony thinks when he sees Loki is _Fuck, he’s gorgeous._ Which is not what you’re supposed to be thinking when you come face to face with alien space wizard who’s been busy trying to subjugate your home planet (and hey, alien’s apparently exist, isn’t that fun?), but Tony can’t help himself. Yeah, that guy is gorgeous. All sharp cheekbones and long, silky-looking black hair, basically the whole _tall, dark and handsome_ idea, and yeah, maybe Tony just happens to be a sucker for that kind of thing. And maybe he’s also a sucker for danger, and this might just be the most dangerous attraction he’s ever fallen victim to (which is saying something in Tony’s case, he’s pretty impressed himself). So, maybe’s staring, just a tiny bit. But fucking hell, that _man_! Or alien. Wizard. Whatever. _That gorgeous creature right there in his living room_.

Yes, Tony noticed before. On the street, on the Quinjet, but it wasn’t the best idea to stare at their common enemy while they were escorting him back to SHIELD. So, he looked away, teased the Captain a little, and then got into a fight with the God of Thunder (and by the way: What the fuck?), and then Loki was taken in by SHIELD. They were a little bit miffed by what had gone down, but Tony couldn’t help feeling relieved once the sorcerer was packed up, out of his sight. He hadn’t missed what he said to that guy wearing drapes for whatever reason ( _Don’t touch my stuff_ , how the fuck did he think that was the right thing to say?), and he knows himself all too well. He’s getting interested, and that can’t happen, no chance in heaven or hell. There are other things he needs to be worrying about, and this is decidedly not one of them.

“Please tell me you’re going to appeal to my humanity.”

Ah, so it’s off, then. Tony has to blink to bring himself back o the present moment (and also because Loki just so happens to be moving with the grace of a freaking panther), reminding himself that yeah, he’s supposed to saving the planet here. Back to business it is!

“Uh, actually, I’m trying to threaten you.”

“You should’ve left your armor on for that”, Loki replies smoothly, and Tony can’t hep but agree silently.

It’s probably been one of his worse idea to take the suit off, but this- He’s still hoping that this won’t turn into a fight. If he’s lucky (and he usually isn’t, but one can always hope), he might just turn the ship around. Then again, who even needs luck? Certainly not him. Not when he’s got skill on his side. And right now, the skill he needs to use is talking his head off no matter how much his heart might be fluttering in his chest.

“Yeah. Well, it’s seen a bit of mileage, and you’ve got the glowstick of destiny”, they’re moving closer together, and that’s probably not a good idea, either.

Still, Tony doesn’t back away. If there’s one thing he has learned during the past few weeks and months, it’s that cowering away in front of predator that’s hopelessly outweighing you doesn’t exactly speak of strength. There’s no doubt in his mind that Loki is a predator as well. A different kind, but just as dangerous, if not more so.

“You want a drink?”

Loki is smiling now, and it makes a shiver run down Tony’s spine. Not because it makes the man look like a maniac (that ship ash sailed a long, long time ago), but because there’s nothing but darkness in that grimace. Tony has met the monster that enjoy the worst things in life, yet when they smiles, there was some real pleasure to be found in their face. Not here. Not at all.

“No, no, _threatening you_. No drink? You sure? Well, I’m having one.”

He busies himself with preparing a drink for himself, careful not to think about turning his back on Loki. Something else you shouldn’t do when confronted with a predator. But he has come to understand that false bravado gets a pretty far in life. And Loki most likely won’t be able to smell his stress across the entire room. Which is a nice change, too.

He’s just about to ask one last time about that drink, when a rumble shakes the Tower. Tony blinks few times, because fuck! He completely forgot! Of course, he still got a giant wolf locked up in his basement -Agiant wolf who happens to hate strangers and unwelcome visitors! Considering how worked up he got when it was only Coulson, Tony’s actually amazed JARVIS hasn’t called his aid yet. Or maybe the AI understands that right now would be the worst fucking moment for an interruption. Yeah, it’s probably that. Looking towards Loki again, Tony frowns when he sees the guy standing completely still, staring at nothing. He can’t be sure what it is but there’s something- Off, about the way those eyes have clouded over, as though--

_There. There it is again. Far, far away, he has missed- Missed it. It was gone, gone for so, so long. Forever... Forever? Was it ever gone? He tries to remember, but his mind clouds over, fills him with deafness and carves a hole into his chest, silencing the sound, the vibration he feels down to his very core... It feels so true... Was it ever gone? Is is back, now? But it can’t be. It’s not- Never again._

_And yet he remembers, he remembers it all, and those memories tear his mind apart, make him shake and shiver and want to cry out. What is it? Something, something... Something is calling out to him, through the thick, cold mist, in a voice he knows better than any other, better than his own, and it’s crying his name, begging, pleading... He knows it can’t be. It’s over, it has been over for a while, before he fell, before the Other- And the mist grows thicker, clouds his mind, tendrils of smoke curling into his ears, gripping his brain tightly and whispering order, telling him to give in, to forget, to only remember his mission and disregard everything else. The voice grows quiet, but the memories persist, urging him to resurface, to come up for air, to open his eyes and his mind again, because that feeling... That tug. There’s something pulsing in his very heart, pulsing and tugging and urging him to- To wake up? Is he asleep. But no. It must be a dream, a dream of something that can never be again. He knows all too well, he saw the ashes, saw the broken chains, and it’s gone, it’s over, gone and gone and gone forever. He knows. And yet he feels that something tugging on his heart again._

For one weird moment, Tony wants to ask Loki if he needs a glass of water. Stupid, of course, but the guy looks about ready to keel over. His eyes are still fixed on nothing, and there’s a light tremble shaking his entire frame. Tony has a feeling that he knows that thousand yard stare a bit too well, and he’s anything but comfortable with this happening in his own living room. He has more than enough mental health issues himself, thank you very much! He doesn’t need to bear witness to Loki’s as well.

But the next second, the sorcerer shakes himself with something that sounds like a snarl, and turns back to face the wide windows, staring at the New York skyline. Just like that, the moment has passed, and Tony has to get back to business once again.

“The Chitauri are coming. Nothing will change that”, and maybe Tony’s imagining it, but doesn’t that sound an awful lot like Loki’s trying to remind himself what he’s even doing here?, “what have I to fear?”

That question, coupled with that smooth, soft voice and the hardly hidden hint of desperation hits a little close to home. Of course, Tony’s too busy mixing his drink to look up and check, but he’s pretty sure Loki isn’t looking like a man (alien/ space wizard/ _whatever_ ) who’s all too sure about his victory. No, it sounds more like a- A plea, actually, a question that he himself desperately needs to be answered, because there’s nothing left to fear. It sounds... Lost, in a way, and wow is weird to think shit like that about the guy who murdered Coulson. But here they are, and Tony feels something stir inside of his chest that has no business stirring right fucking now.

“The Avengers”, he says instead of anything else he might say, or even worse _ask_ , “that’s what we call ourselves. Sorta like a team. Earth’s mightiest heroes, that kinda thing.”

“Yes. I’ve met them”, Loki replies with a smug smile, and Tony can’t help but grin bitterly at the sight of that.

“Takes us a while to get any traction, I’ll give you that one. But... Let’s do a head count here: Your brother, the demigod”, at that Loki huffs and annoyed breath and turns away (Tony stows that piece of information away for later), “a super soldier, living legend who kind of lives up to the legend.”

Clipping on the wrist bands goes unnoticed, so Tony happily continues talking. He only needs a few more seconds, just a little bit longer...

“A man with _breathtaking_ anger management issues, couple of master assassins- And you! Big fellow, you’ve managed to piss off every single one of them.”

Loki is still smiling smugly, and it’s starting to get on Tony’s nerves. Gorgeous and fascinating as he might be, Tony’s definitely not in the mood to be mocked and looked at like he doesn’t even get the concept of two plus two equals four. Not now, not ever.

“That was the plan.”

“Not a great plan”, replies as he steps out from behind the bar, “when they come, and they will, they’ll come for you.”

“I have an army.”

“We have a Hulk.”

“Oh, I’d thought had the beast had wondered off--”

“You’re missing the point”, Tony interrupts, and he’s getting frustrated now, because he can tell Loki’s a lot brighter than he’s making out to be, “there’s no throne. There’s no version of this, where you come out on top. _Maybe_ your army comes, and _maybe_ it’s too much for us, but it’s all on you. Because if we can’t protect the earth you can be damn well sure we’ll avenge it.”

Tony thinks he sees a flicker of something (uncertainty? Regret?) pass over Loki’s face, but it’s gone too fast to be sure, and just then they’re interrupted once again.

Another rumble shakes through the building, this one stronger and lasting longer then the last one did, accompanied by a low, penetrating growl. If this was any other time, he’d already be racing towards the elevator, because this- This hasn’t happened before. No matter how frustrated his wolf got, it never got to a point where it shook the entire Tower. For a split second, Tony wonders what he’s doing down there. If he knows that the engineer is in danger, and desperately trying to get out of the lab, to come and help him. The wolf might actually stand a chance against Loki, but Tony doesn’t even think about telling JARVIS to open the doors and find out for sure, no way in hell. The AI still hasn’t called for his assistance, but by now Tony’s sure it has nothing to do with the severity of the situation, and more with the fact that there’s no way he can just leave and take care of _Project_ _Ruff Stuff_ right now. He’s stuck here, and can only hope there’ll be a lab to return to whenever all of this is over and done.

Even as he thinking all this, Tony doesn’t miss the one second of blankness that passes through Loki’s unnaturally bright eyes. Just one second, but it’s enough, because it looks exactly like the first time around, and Tony wonders if Loki knows something about--

_The humming fills his head, pushes through the mist and shakes his entire being to the core. He remembers, again, for just a few seconds he remembers, and it breaks his heart all over again. No, it can’t be, it can’t be, it can’t be, and he knows, he knows that it can’t be true, and yet the voice picks up again, calling out for him. He has listened to that voice for so many centuries, knows its sound by heart and mind, and won’t ever forget it. Nothing could ever tear it from his mind. Not the vast nothingness that filled the universe and froze his mind with the sheer and vast loneliness he felt there, nor the Other, who tried so hard to erase every last shred of hope and love that could be found in his cold, shriveled up heart. He_ **_knows_ ** _that voice, he_ **_knows_ ** _that call, and for a few precious moments, he breaches the surface and breathes, and remembers and aches and shakes._

_There it is. The tether that binds them. He can see it float through the mist, through the cold, and he can see it vibrating, emitting that humming sound he used to listen for desperately ever since he lost it. With every last bit of energy and strength he reaches out, stretches and curses and tries to grab hold of the tether knows will pull him out of this cold, whispering mist, and back, back_ **_home_ ** _, back where he_ **_belongs_ ** _, since it never was a place but rather-- But then, he loses his footing and sinks back into the mist. His mind fights to reach the tether regardless, but it’s a losing battle, as he is too weak and exhausted to persist any longer. Moments later, the tight grip on his mind has returned, and his straying fought have been eradicated. He remembers his mission, and moves to fulfill it. That’s all that is left, after all. Everything is long gone. And therefore, there is nothing left to feel, or crave... Or love._

The moment passes, and Tony can’t help but feel disappointed. Sure, he’ll blast Loki through the wall and back into whatever weird dimension he came from, but still... There was that small bit of hope left that he could avoid a fight. He’s usually not the kind of guy to reach out and offer a hand to the maniac who’s trying to conquer his home planet, but Loki- Loki’s kinda not selling his play. Doesn’t seem all that sure about his plans (shitty as they are, that’s kinda of understandable), and dammit if Tony doesn’t want this all to end in blood shed. So, he tried. But now that Loki has shaken himself awake once again, it looks like things won’t work out in his favor after all. The man is moving towards him, once again reminding Tony of a panther, or a jaguar, or something else elegant and dangerous, lips pulled back in a snarl

“How will your friends have time for me”, he whispers lowly, raising his glowstick, “when they are so busy fighting you?”

Tony tenses up when the tip of that thing touches his chest, bracing himself for the worst. But nothing happens. There’s a small clink when metal meets metal, and that’s about it. Judging by the look of surprised frustration on Loki’s face, he was hoping for something a little less anticlimatic as well. He tries again, with exactly the same result.

“This usually works.”

“Well, performance issues. Not uncommon. On out of five--”

That’s as far as he gets before Loki has grabbed him by the throat, throwing him through the room without any effort, and Tony is already regretting reaching out to that asshole in the first place before he lands on the cool floor.

“JARVIS? Any time now?”, he grunts as he pushes himself up to his feet, but a moment later he’s already grabbed again.

“You’re a fool for trying to fool me--”, Loki snarls--

“Deploy!”, he calls, but it’s too late, and a moment later he’s already crashing through the window, plummeting towards his (rather certain) death.

Thankfully, Tony is a genius, and JARVIS is pretty awesome, too, and that’s what saves him in the end. Just moment later he’s soaring upward again, coming to hover in front of decidedly displeased looking Loki. But Ton’y _done_ now. Fuck trying to help people who don’t deserve it, fuck trying to avoid beating that asshole’s head in, fuck _everything_! Time to remind that maniac who’s boss around here.

“And there’s one other person you pissed off. His name’s Phil.”

Before Loki gets a chance to fire, Tony blasts him backwards, sending him flying through the room. That’s also the moment a giant beam of _something_ shoots up towards the sky, and that just can’t be a good sign. Sure enough, just seconds later _fucking aliens_ start to fly out from a portal that opened in the sky, and this day is just getting better and better.

“Right”, Tony murmur lowly to himself, “army.”

Funny how you can forget things like that! Cursing his own forgetfulness Tony takes off, ready to kick some ass.

_He is fighting, he is aware of that fact, but not much more. He feels it, senses it, but the rest of his mind is filled with that humming, that voice, and the vibration he feels running through himself. It’s not longer just an energetic occurrence, either - The ground beneath his feet is trembling, the entire structure shaking, and he knows- He knows that something is not right. He is not supposed to be here. No, he is supposed to leave, and go down, down to where that force is coming from. A force strong enough to shake this Tower, strong enough even to shake his mind awake and call out to him. But there’s still the mist filling his head, that tight grip on his thoughts, and yet they start to stray again, wandering, wondering... And he listens, and he remembers, and for just a few moments, he dares to hope again. That it might be true, that it might be back, that he might have- And he knows it can’t be, but the humming doesn’t stop this time, it only grows louder and more insistent, filling him up and shaking him, until that grip slips, and breaches the surface once again._

_There it is. The tether, reaching him for him like it always did, from the very first moment. He tries again to reach back, to cling to it and_ **_believe_ ** _again, to_ **_feel_ ** _again, to_ **_remember_ ** _and_ **_care_ ** _and_ **_hope_ ** _... And he fights. Fights against the mist, the cold, the fear, the memories of heat and steel and endless hours in the darkness, against everything in his mind telling him that it can’t be, it can’t be true, as it has been over for a while now. He pushes through it, reaching towards the tether, and for one sweet, overwhelming moment, his fingers brush against the soft, warm string. Everything grinds to a halt at that, and Loki feels himself take the first breath of air in what feels like an eternity. The Tower shifts, shakes, almost knocks him off his feet, and he can’t be help but smile at that, because he_ **_remembers_ ** _, he remembers it all, and there he is, right here, and it can’t be true but it is, because there is no way mistaking that voice, that tether, that connection for anything else but his beloved--_

_And just then, something smashes into him. He stumbles, he falls, and he loses his grip on the tether, drifting back down into the ocean of mist underneath him. A long, desperate, pain filled howl follows him down, but he no longer knows what it means._

In the end, the Avengers come together to fight the alien army that is currently invading New York. Tony thinks back to a time when being Iron Man was the weirdest part of his life, and he’s laugh tiredly, if wasn’t flying through the city at high speed, trying to get rid of some of those aliens without getting himself killed. It’s cool see the Hulk in action, and if he was a slightly more emotional man, he’d feel some pride at seeing the team coming together after all. As it is, he doesn’t really give a fuck, because the Chitauri are tearing apart his city, and he’s not the sappy kind of guy, anyway.

Tony almost does die in the end, but it’s mostly his own fault. Never thought he’d volunteer for a suicide mission like that, but he does, because he’s the only one who can do it. So, he does. It’s him or New York- Fuck, it’s him or _the entire fucking world_ , and while that’s as much motivation as you’ll ever get, it’s not an easy decision. In fact, Tony doesn’t feel heroic or at peace when he flies into the black hole. No, he feels fucking terrified, shaking and close to bursting into tears, because this could cost him his life, and he kinda wants to live, dammit! Still, he flies up into that fucking black hole, and he sees things that terrify him more than dark caves and terrorist and everything else combined, and then everything goes black and he’s falling.

Somehow, he lives. Tony doesn’t believe in miracles, but even he has trouble finding any other explanations. He rambles about shawarma if only to distract from the fact that he’s shaking so hard he hardly manages to get up, but no one mentions it, even if they look at him a bit funny. But then again, who doesn’t? Doesn’t matter, because Tony is alive, and he isn’t damaged beyond repair, and he’ll see another day, and isn’t that just fucking awesome? And so, they all get up and make their back to the Tower together, because there’s still the matter of a certain crazy space wizard to take care of, and Tony has to swallow at that thought. No, he is no longer under the impression that there’d be a way to keep Loki from wrecking the city (obviously, that was a miscalculation on his part, and those don’t occur all that often), and yet he isn’t too keen on seeing the other man again. Not because he’s afraid, he never was. And now he’s got the entire team with him, including the Hulk, so they should be more than alright. But there’s something still niggling at the back of his mind that makes him hesitate and wish he could just skip that last part of the mission. He doesn’t, of course, because it also feels important to bring this to an end, and he knows that he’d regret it if he wasn’t there. Also, the Tower is kind of his home, and he has nowhere else to go. No way he’ll let the others handle the rest of the Avengers handle everything, what with- And shit, he completely forgot about Sato! Fucking hell, the wolf must’ve been going crazy! Cursing under his breath, Tony resists the urge to call up the security feed, because that won’t help right now. Instead, he vows to get this all over with as quickly as possible. No gloating, no celebration, just cleaning up the worst of the mess and then getting the hell back down to his lab!

Loki glares at them from his seat on the floor, but he is smart enough to raise his hands in surrender. Tony doesn’t feel as much joy as he thought he would. He’s still too busy shaking apart and shivering in the cold that’s no longer there, and he doesn’t like the look he sees on the god’s face - Blank and empty, and lost, too. As if he completely forgot how he even got here, as if he just woke up from a really bad dream. But that doesn’t matter. He’s a villain, a criminal, and he’ll be locked up for a long time now, wherever that might end up happening. Tony is just so fucking tired, and ready to collapse and not get up for a long, long time. Honestly, he can’t wait for all of this to be over.

The Captain is talking, and Tony doesn’t listen, because he has a feeling he’s reading Loki is rights, and he wonders if those even apply to alien gods, when there’s another rumble traveling through the Tower. Cap stops talking, and they all look around confusedly, because, well- That’s not something you expect to happen in an apparently stable building such as this one. Tony’s brain comes back online, and he slides up his face plate.

“Uh, sorry. Small experiment I left on down in the lab. Nothing to worry about.”

As if to prove him wrong, another rumble, and the Tower shakes even harder. This time, they actually have to work to stay upright, and just a moment later, the ground shakes again under their feet. Rogers turns towards him with raised eyebrows, but Tony starts talking before he can.

“Okay, maybe not exactly small, but--”

The rest of his sentence gets drowned out by a _fucking growl_ , so loud and penetrating that it travels up through the entire Tower. Tony has never heard Sato growl like that, not even once. Not when he first came here, not when he devours his meat, not when any stranger sets foot inside of the Tower. Never, _ever_ has he heard something like this in the Tower, or anywhere else.

“Tony, what the hell--”, Rogers starts again, but Tony doesn’t listen.

“JARVIS? Care to update me?”

_Certainly, sir. Project Ruff Stuff has overheated, and is currently approaching status red._

Oh- Oh _shit_! That’s code for “Sato is about to go fucking ballistic, everybody run for over”, a code which they never had to use before. It also means that JARVIS doesn’t think any measures they could’ve taken are now rendered pretty much useless. Tony starts to sweat, already thinking in a thousand different directions. Okay, step one: He needs to get everyone but himself out of here! Turning towards Rogers, he claps his hands together and puts on a fake, cheery smile.

“Well, sounds like the Tower is about to blow th fuck up! Everybody please move towards the emergency exits, while I try to save my baby without getting killed a second time in less than an hour!”

To his immense displeasure, the others don’t immediately start to file out of his living room, but rather keep looking at him, confused and only slightly worried.

“What do you mean by that, Stark?”, Romanov asks with raised eyebrows as she cocks her hips.

“Experiment, remember? It’s been running for a little too long, and that’s biting me in the ass right now. If it’s already approaching status red, we don’t have all that much time. So, if you’d please move your asses--”

“You really think you can stop it from exploding?”, Barton mutters, and judging by the look he sends Tony’s way, he doesn’t believe so himself, which okay, who cares what the bird brain thinks, anyway.

“I certainly think I’m the most qualified for the job.”

“You need any help?”

Of course Rogers would ask that, and Tony just wants to ask him if he has any degrees in mechanical engineering he forgot to mention when another rumble runs through the Tower, and this time each of them stumble. The growling gets louder and louder, mixed with a roaring that makes Tony’s ears tingle, and his heart clench uncomfortably. Yeah, okay, he’s scared. Because he can tell there’s something coming- A storm, the way it feels, and he doesn’t feel ready at all.

His eyes start to dart through the room, and they stop at Loki’s face. Even through all the panic, he can’t help but notice that there’s a strange look on the god’s face. Different than before, almost- Enchanted in a way, as if he’s just realized something that’s too good to be true. Face and eyes no longer empty, but the tiniest flicker of hope moving through his green- Green eyes? What the fuck--

“Tony, we should get going”, Rogers says in what he seems to believe to be a confident tone of voice, “if there’s gonna be an explosion, we need to get--”

“Yeah, great idea! You guys go ahead, I’ll try and salvage my Tower!”, Tony interrupts with a fake grin, claps the Captain on the shoulder (honestly, it’s not fair that he has to actually reach up to do that), and starts to move towards the elevator, “and take Houdini out of my living room while you’re at it!”

_Sir, Project Ruff Stuff has left the lab._

“WHAT?”, he screams, coming to a halt right next to Loki, “THE FUCK?”

That can’t be happening. That is absolutely impossible, because he built that fucking lab solely focused on keeping Sato _from leaving it_. Yet the wolf has apparently managed to do just that. Which is... Bad. Really, really, _really_ _fucking bad_ , and if he doesn’t come up with a grand master plan in the next five seconds, he’s gonna be fucked.

“Okay. Okay, okay, okay. New plan. You!”, he calls, turning around and pointing at the small gathering of weirdos, who are still looking at him like he’s lost his mind (which is entirely possible at this point in time), “get THE FUCK out of here! Shit’s gonna get real in just a few seconds, and I’m the only one in a metal suit of armor, so I’ll stay and fix this mess! You get out!”

There’s not as much movement following his orders as he wishes there were, but at least they start to move and pack up their stuff. Tony’s eyes dart back down to Loki’s face. The god hasn’t so much as twitched for the last few minutes, but there are small changes to be seen, still. His lips have parted, his eyes are less- _Dead_ , and there’s something like color returning to his cheeks. Tony can’t help but wonder why the fuck he’d choose this very moment to come back alive, but he also doesn’t have the capacities to care as it is. Maybe he gets up on disaster and mayhem, who cares!

“Are you sure--”

“So fucking sure, just- Just get out, okay? Got a feeling it’s gonna get real mess--”

_Sir, Project Ruff Stuff--_

“Yeah, yeah, we’re working on it, dear, it’s just--”

Another rumble, the ground shakes, and then there’s a loud crash, audible through the entire Tower. Tony freezes, because that’s not a good sound no matter the situation, and especially not now. Another crash, and another one, another one, more rumbling and shaking, but now there’s a rhythm to it, and that worries Tony even more. It no longer sounds like random destruction, but rather like a plan. Like determination, and Tony has a feeling that Sato’s determination is a force to be reckoned with. _Not_ _good_.

_Sir, Project Ruff Stuff has entered the elevator shaft._

There’s a telling silence, and even Tony doesn’t know what to say to that. He was under the impression that Sato would roam through the hallways, contained by the fact that no staircase leads down to the lab, and that’d be the end of it. Apparently he was wrong about that. The rest of the Avenger is looking at him, but he has in no state to act like he isn’t fucking worried out of his mind right now.

“... What?”, Tony whispers after a few more seconds of awkward silence, “what _the fuck_ did you just say, JARVIS?”

“What kind of experiments are you running down--”

“Not now, bird brain!”, Tony hisses, staring at the elevator doors, still unable to believe--

_Project Ruff Stuff is currently climbing up the elevator shaft. ETA twelve point five seconds._

“Oh, FUCK NO!”

“Tony, what the hell is going on?”, Rogers asks, and Tony kinda wants to punch him in the face just about now, because this is not the time to ask stupid questions.

Turning around he comes face to face with his mostly worried team mates, minus the Hulk, who just looks confused, and Thor, who’s staring towards the elevator like he has an idea what’s about to come. Might be for the best, because Tony can use all the help he can get. For whatever reason, his eyes dart back down to Loki once again, and it’s startlingly to see the light that’s suddenly shining in his bright green eyes. Slowly, almost as if he’s afraid of everything fading away if he moves too fast, the god turns towards the elevator as well, and Tony swears he sees something more--

_Sir, Project Ruff Stuff’s ETA is down to five seconds--_

No, no, no, no, no! That can’t be happening, that can’t- No, fucking hell, NO! Tony lets out a breath, shaking from head to toe, because there’s no way he’ll get those weirdos out of his Tower, and so all he can do is turn around and face the team he is apparently part of, now, and look at them with all that he’s got left- Honesty. Once again, it’s Rogers who steps forward, eyes wide with concern.

“Tony, what is going--”

“Look, whatever happens, just- Don’t shoot him, okay?”

He can see Barton and Romanov reach for their weapons, which is just fucking great and not what he needs right now, but at least Rogers doesn’t look like he’s ready for battle, and more like he’s trying to understand why Tony’s losing his mind.

“What are you--”

“Trust me on this, okay? He won’t hurt you, just- Just stay still, don’t move too much, and let me handle everything. But don’t fucking shoot him. Understood?”

“Who are you talking--”

“Project Ruff Stuff. You’re gonna meet him. Right now--”

He couldn’t have timed it better, because there’s another deafening crash, and the elevator doors bend under a huge force, hitting them again and again. One more hit, and they come flying through the room. The Avengers duck and move out of the way, but Tony pays them any mind as he turns around to face his wolf. He’ll deal with this, like he has already done countless times before. And they’ll be just fine.

Sadly, Sato doesn’t seem to share that plan. The wolf moves a lot faster than Tony anticipated. One moment, he is crawling out of the elevator shaft, bearing his teeth and snarling, the next he’s already leaping into the room. Tony sometimes forgets just how big his wolf is, especially down in the massive lab. Here, in the living room, he suddenly remembers, and even makes him take a step back. Sato’s hackles are raised, teeth bared, golden-brown eyes blazing. Tony can _feel_ the tension fill the room, can hear the others gasp and grab their weapons, and he needs to move, needs to do something, anything, or else--

But before he can take a single step, a soft voice pierces his ears.

“Fenrir?”

Tony doesn’t know why, but something breaks inside of him at that single word. Sato lets out a whine at that and pushes past him without a single glance back, throwing himself at Loki. For a weird moment, Tony thinks that the wolf is going to kill the god, simply for breaking into his den, but something completely different happens. Sato all but _melts_ against Loki, pressing close, shaking from snout to paw, whimpering and whining, keening as Loki’s arms hesitantly wrap around the wolf’s neck, pulling him against the god’s chest. And Tony wants to say something, ask what the fuck is going on, demand an explanation, but he can’t. All he can do is stand there and watch, as Sato slumps to the ground, pushing and crawling closer until Loki falls onto his back, still clinging to the wolf’s grey white fur. He has never seen Sato like this, not even a single time. Completely dissolving in happiness and relief, trembling so hard he feels his shivers through the floor underneath his feet, and Loki- Loki is fucking _crying_ all of a sudden, sobbing as he presses his face into the wolf’s fur and holds on for dear life. Tony is completely perplexed, and he doesn’t dare step closer, something he can’t name keeping him apart. And then, he hear Loki’s voice, all trembling and wet with tears, and everything grinds to a halt.

“Fenrir... Oh, my sweet pup, my beloved little wolf... I thought I’d lost you, I thought- I thought--”

Sato lets out a howl at that, shaking so hard it almost looks like he’s having a seizure, and just as Tony wants to step forward to do something, _anything_ , because he can tell it’s getting too much and wants to _help his wolf_ , no matter what- When Loki gently pushes the frantic animal back, places his head on each of the wolf’s cheeks, lets out a small breath.

There’s a- It’s hard to explain. A shift, a stutter in reality, and then the wolf is gone. In his place, there’s a boy curled up in Loki’s lap, no older than fourteen, fifteen years. The kid stills for a moment, and then breaks down again, sobbing and gasping as he presses close once again, as if he wants to try and crawl into Loki’s skin, as if he can’t get close enough. The god lets out a breath, wrapping his arms around the boy’s slender shoulders, pulling him close as his eyes slide shut as well, clinging to the child who was a giant wolf just seconds ago. Pressing a kiss into the child’s light blond hair, he curls himself around the child protectively, and whispers into his ear.

“I missed you so much, my dear son.”

And Tony stares at them, still unable to move, and all he can think is: _Fuck_.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> New chapter on time, yay! Next chapter is probably gonna be a bit on the longer side (I'm estimating 8.000-10.000 words), so it'll probably take me an extra day or two to write (because I haven't even started yet, but I'm optimistic it'll be done rather quickly). So yeah, I think Friday should be realistic, Saturday at the very least :)
> 
> Comments and kudos are always appreciated!
> 
> Love,  
> Goldie

There are a few moments of awkward silence, before Barton says what everyone else is thinking.

“What the fuck is going on?”

“I think we’d all like to know”, Natasha adds, and turns towards Tony, looking at him with a raised eyebrow, like he’s supposed to just open his mouth and explain _everything_.

No way. He’s still busy staring at Loki and the sobbing child he’s cradling to his chest, eyes closed and looking as though there’s nothing else on his mind then- Well, that kid. Tony can’t really blame him. He’s still trying to process the fact that his wolf just turned into a human child. Or, as human as those guys can ever be. Right now, that boy looks really fucking human to him.

Thankfully, Thor comes to his aid, speaking with a gravelly voice.

“This is Fenrir, my brother’s- Loki’s son.”

Which, okay. Okay, he can kinda- No, that’d be a lie. He can’t really get behind that, because that kid used to be a giant fucking wolf, and there’s just no way.

“Uh, I’m having trouble believing that”, Barton mutters, but Thor doesn’t seem to be listening.

The God of Thunder is staring at Loki, who hasn’t moved to far, other than to take off his dark green cape and wrap it around his- His _son_ , pulling the kid close once again. The boy is still crying and sobbing messily, shaking as though he’ll fall apart any moment, but Loki doesn’t let go, only tightens his hold and whispering something into the kid’s ear. He isn’t looking on anyone else, and Tony can’t begrudge him for that.

“He was believed to be dead”, Thor continues, ignoring everyone’s incredulous looks, “but it appears that he is not.”

“Obviously”, Natasha mutters, looking back towards the pair on the floor, “and it looks like he’s been staying with Tony.”

She looks at him with barely concealed distrust, but the engineer can’t bring himself to care, can’t bring himself to tell her to fuck off with that look. Tony keeps quiet, which is unusual for him, but it feels like his mouth has been glued shut. No words coming out, and he can’t remember when he has ever been speechless before. Swallowing down the bitterness he feels crawling up his throat, he takes a few steps back and gestures for the others to follow him. He knows all too well that he won’t get out of this one without coming clean, but it feels wrong doing it here, when those two are still clinging to each other.

Rogers frowns as he looks back towards Loki, and then turns to face Thor.

“Do you think we can leave them... Alone? For a minute or two?”

To their surprise, Thor smiles ever so slightly.

“I doubt there is anything to be found in all the nine realms that would prompt my- Loki to move from his current position.”

While the assassins look ready to protest that statement, it seems to be enough for the Captain, as he nods for them to follow Tony. Not far, of course, just a few steps towards the landing strip. Loki would have a hard time getting away without any of them noticing, especially with Barton and Romanov facing him. Not that the god has made any move to even get up, let alone try and escape. Just as they are about to reach the landing strip, Banner shifts back. It’s a little surprising to say the least, but the good Doctor doesn’t really seem about about it. No, he seems strangely downtrodden, subdued, and barely manages to smile at Thor, who takes off his cape so that he won’t have to strut around naked. Although, after a day like this, Tony doubts anyone would really be weirded out.

“Alright, Thor, start the beginning”, Rogers prompts once they come to a halt, crossing his arms over his chest, “what is going on? Who is that boy? What happened here?”

“As I already told you: The boy is Fenrir, Loki’s youngest child.”

“Oh yeah, the resemblance is uncanny”, Barton snorts, but Natasha elbows him in the side roughly, “c’mon, you really believe that shit?”

“He did just turn into a boy, you know?”, Banner counters lowly, nodding towards the living room.

“He is what is known as a shifter”, Thor adds quickly, “his mother was a great she-wolf, but he always maintained the ability to shift. He simply preferred to live as a wolf whenever it was possible.”

“So, this is not some scheme? Not just some convenient way out for brother dearest?”

“Nay, Barton, it is not. My- Loki may be a silver tongue, and one of the most gifted liars in all the nine realms, but he would never lie about his children. He loves them with all of his heart, and he has always had a special connection with Fenrir.”

Thor is saying all of this with a strange expression on his face - A mixture of fondness and... Frustration? Tony isn’t sure. He isn’t sure about anything, anymore, only standing and staring and wondering how the fuck he got himself into this mess. Pretty sure he didn’t sign up for any of this shit.

“Why did you think he was dead?”

“Father told my brother just a few months ago”, Thor answers with a frown, turning back towards them, “I did not know for a long time afterwards. But I had suspected something of this severity had happened, for Loki had... Changed.”

“Turned into a murdering maniac, you mean”, Natasha counters, but this time it’s Barton who shakes his head, looking back at- Father and son, apparently.

“Lost a kid, huh?”

“No, he hasn’t”, Natasha mutters, straightening back up and looking at Tony, “his kid was here the whole time. Care to explain how that happened?”

This time, they all turn towards Tony, and he knows that now’s the time to shake off whatever he’s been trying to process, put on a fake smile and act like none of this is bothering him. Sadly, it doesn’t work that way. He has to clear his throat several times and takes a few deep breaths before he finally gets a few words out, and he can tell that his voice sounds anything but strong and steady.

“I- I don’t know how he ended up here. Fell asleep in the lab, and woke up to an explosion, the entire lab was turned upside down. Next thing I knew, I had a giant fucking wolf right in front of me. He was... Injured, and I- I cleaned him up a bit, bandaged his wounds, and--”

“And then you decided to keep him?”, Steve asks with raised eyebrows, and Tony can just not deal with that disappointed boy scout leader bullshit!

“Well, not like I had a lot of experts to turn to!”, he hisses angrily, throwing his hands up in the air, “never heard about any vet specializing in giant teleporting wolves, but in case you wanna enlighten me, I’d more than--”

“You could have contacted SHIELD.”

“Yeah. Of fucking course”, Tony growls, glaring at Natasha with nothing but rage, “because then he would’ve just been locked into a lab somewhere out in the siberian wilderness, where he’d be experimented on for the rest of his life! No, thanks, but no fucking way in hell!”

“That’s awful lot of emotion to have about a monster.”

He knows why she says it, he knows that she's just baiting him to rise and yell and let them all see just how compromised he is. He knows, but he just can't stop himself. Something snaps inside of Tony at that, and he can tell Romanov is aware of that, and he knows he's giving her exactly what she wanted. She doesn’t back down, of course, that’s just not something she does, but her gaze sharpens when Tony takes a threatening step closer, bearing his teeth.

“He’s _not_ a monster!”, he whispers, barely keeping from screaming into her face, “okay, I know he looks a little... Scary, but he’s not a fucking monster! He hasn’t hurt anyone so far, even though, considering how he looked when he crashed in my lab, he’d have more than enough reason to! So don’t just stand there and act like you’ve got a clue about what’s been going on here! No one asked for your opinion, okay? So keep it to yourself!”

Romanov doesn’t look impressed, and Tony thinks about punching people again, especially when Rogers presses a hand to his chest and pushes him back just a bit.

“Okay, let’s all calm down a bit.”

Tony doesn’t feel like calming down. Tony feels like punching someone in the face. But, of course, Rogers won’t let that happen, which is a damn shame, because there’s a lot of anger burning in Tony blood, and he feels like letting it out.

“We need to take a step back and think about what we’re going to do. The situation has changed, and we need--”

“I’m going to contact Director Fury.”

“The hell you will!”

“Someone has to be the responsible adult here, Stark”, Romanov mutters, already reaching towards her earpiece, “and this is not something you can handle by throwing money at it. This demands a little--”

“Less empathy? And more creepy doctors ready to dissect a living, emotional creature? Yeah, that sounds about right! Also, just for your information: I have been handling it _for months_! And no one’s been killed so far!”

“That’s a pretty low standard, even for you.”

Tony remembers Rhodey telling him pretty much the same thing, and he feels just as pissed now. He knows that it won’t do him much good to kill Natasha (granted that he’ll manage to do so), but he’s still feeling angry, and he needs an outlet. And Natasha is shaping up to be the perfect target. Because if she tells SHIELD, if she calls them right now and they come over, there’s no question that they’ll take Sato away, and Tony knows that the wolf- The _boy_ won’t ever see the light of day again. And he can’t let that happen. No matter that he’s still not done processing all of this, there’s still the certainty that he won’t let them take the wolf away.

He’s just about to tell the assassin as much (with a lot more profanities thrown in, of course) when Rogers steps in between once again.

“That’s not something we can just decide, Natasha. As much as we need some back-up, we won’t call SHIELD immediately. There are things that need to be discussed, first.”

Romanov is about to protest, when Barton, of all people, steps forward and gently touches her elbow. She turns towards him, and he motions for her to follow, walking a few steps away into another part of the living room. There, they put there heads together, and start talking very fast in what Tony can only guess is Russian. Well, Barton is talking, and Romanov is staring ahead with dead eyes, nodding every other second or whispering a few words back. When it becomes clear that they won’t join back into their little group discussion anytime soon, Rogers takes a deep breath and turns towards Thor.

“Alright, we won’t call SHIELD right this second. But, Thor, can you tell me if- If Fenrir is dangerous? I need to know, so that we don’t take any unnecessary.”

Thor sighs at that, casting a glance towards Loki and his kid, and Tony wonder what goes on in the god’s blonde head. Not sure he actually wants to know, because he has a feeling that there’s a lot more than he’s ready to deal with. Better stay as ignorant as possible for the moment.

“It is not as simple”, Thor finally answers slowly, “to my knowledge, Fenrir has never harmed any other creature, except for his prey. But no Asgardian was ever hurt by Loki’s son, let alone killed by Fenrir. He has never shown much aggression towards anyone, as far as I can say.”

“That’s... Good. But why isn’t it easy to answer, then?”

Thor hesitates at that, and Tony raises his eyebrows. Seems like it’s going to get interested right now. More than it already has, at least, which is saying something, because this- This is something extraordinary. Finally, the big guy breathes a small sigh and lowers his gaze towards the ground.

“There was a... Prophecy. A völva came to Odin, shortly after Fenrir was born, and foretold the wolf’s destiny. It- I do not think it is my place to tell, my friends. Be assured, it was not a bright fate she saw for Fenrir.”

“I have absolutely no trouble believing that”, Tony mutters, thinking back to the condition Sato- _Fenrir_ arrived in.

Bruce has been quiet for most of the conversation, but now he lifts his gaze again, looking at Thor.

“He is the Fenriswolf, then?”

“Ay, Banner, that he is.”

“We, uh... We have stories about your world, here on Earth.”

“Lady Jane told me about those”, Thor nods with a reminiscent smile that does not at all fit the current atmosphere in the room.

“Are those.. True? I mean the stories about Fenrir”, Banner adds when the god starts to reply, “about his fate, and what- What Odin did, after he was told?”

Thor hesitates a moment, and that is already answer enough. Tony wishes he paid a bit more attention in school when they talked about norse mythology, but like he told JARVIS, he never believed that fairy tales would ever help him in real life. Judging by the way Bruce cringes and shudders at the small nod that finally follows, maybe it’s better not to know. Bruce doesn’t know Sa- _Fenrir_ , and if he’s already looking like he’s going to throw up any moment now--

“Do you know how he got here, then?”

“I thought him dead, Captain”, Thor replies with a small shrug, “we all did. Even Loki, his own father. Whoever has set him free would be the only one to answer your question.”

“So, we don’t know shit, basically.”

Tony can’t deny that he’s getting just a little frustrated. Yeah, maybe he was hoping for some answers, after all, even if he’s terrified of getting them at the same time. Looking back at the two figures still huddled on the floor, he notices that the kid has stopped sobbing quite as hard, and is now slumped limply against his father’s chest. His hands are clinging to Loki’s shoulders, face presses against his father’s neck, and he’s still trembling from head to toe. But, he has calmed down just a bit. That’s a relief. A small one, but a relief nonetheless.

“We know that he’s a _kid_ ”, Tony mutters through clenched teeth without turning back towards the group, “not just some _monster_ you can lock up without feeling bad about it! But if we call SHIELD in on this, that’s exactly what’s gonna happen.”

“You don’t know--”

“Oh, come one, Rogers! Like they wouldn’t just fucking _love_ to dissect--”

“You can’t just say--”

“Fucking hell, how can you be this naive? After everything you’ve seen just a few hours ago, you’d still trust them with something like _him_?”

“With all due respect”, Bruce pipes up quietly, “but I’m with Tony on this one. SHIELD won’t care that he _looks_ like a human child now. As soon as they’ll get wind of his true origin, he’ll be taken away.”

“And you can’t tell me you’d be alright with that, Rogers! I mean, just- Just look at him, will you?”

The four of them turn to look at the kid they’ve been talking about, and well- It only proves Tony’s point. By now, Sato has stopped crying, and has apparently fallen asleep in his father’s arms. He’s still clinging to Loki, who hasn’t loosened his grip on his child, but is now rocking them gently from side to side, whispering into the boy’s ear and pressing kisses into the light blonde hair. Seems like he completely forgot about anything that’s happening around him, and even knowing everything Tony knows, he can still feel his heart squeeze at the image. If even _he_ feels something shift inside of him, he’d bet his considerable fortune that it’s working miracles on Rogers. One look at the soldier’s face, and he knows he’s right. The man looks about ready to start crying, though he does his best to hide it. Not very successful, but Tony doesn’t mind at all.

“Okay. We won’t call SHIELD. _Yet_ ”, he adds when Tony throws his fist up in the air, “but what’s the plan here, then? We can’t just--”

“We can’t really decide anything as it is, Steve. Not without consulting his father”, Bruce interrupts softly.

Thor looks about ready to protest, but seems to think better of it just a moment later, shoulders slumping.

“I fear my brother won’t be of much use in this regard. He has always been stubborn, but when it comes to his son, Loki turns into a fire spitting harpy. I doubt he would be willing to--”

“Give up his child? Wow, what a monster”, Tony can’t help but growl, earning himself a disapproving glance from Rogers.

“We’re not asking him to give up his child--”

“Oh no? Because I don’t really see anything else happening here, Capsicle.”

“No matter what we think about any of this, Loki is going to be imprisoned. And it won’t matter if it’s here or on Asgard, he won’t be able to care for a child either way”, Bruce throws in, pulling the red cape tighter around himself, “and he won’t have much more time to make a decision. We’ll have to ask him at some point, ideally before SHIELD or anyone else gets here.”

Rogers nods, and Tony thinks that yeah, Bruce is kind of right. Doesn’t mean he wants it to happen, because the thought of any sort of decision makes his knees weak. He’s simply not ready to think about changes. He’s not even ready to think about how he’s gonna spend the night. All he wants to is- Wake up. Because he still hopes that this is an especially terrible nightmare. No luck so far, but one can always hope.

“Is there anyone- Anyone who can take care of Fenrir?”, Rogers asks lowly when no one else speaks up, “some relative, or a family friend? Just... Someone who knows him, and would be willing to take him in?”

Tony can’t help but flinch at that suggestion. Of course, it’s the rational thing to ask, because it’d be the perfect solution. If it works out, that is. And Tony wants it to work out, right?... Right? But this is not about him, either way. It’s about Sato- About _Fenrir_ , about that wolf, boy, whatever, and a bit about his father as well. But not about Tony, not one bit. So he has no right to act as if he has anything to say in this regard.

“Nay, my friend, you do not understand. Fenrir is not... Welcome in Asgard.”

“But he’s Loki’s--”

“The Aesir fear the wolf, and have always done so”, Thor explains with a small frown, “no matter that he has never reached out to strike, they will not welcome him back. Not with his father no longer by his side. They would prefer to slay him, and mount his head on the Palace wall.”

“Are you fucking serious?”

“That I am.”

“Fucking hell”, Tony mutters, pinching the bridge of his nose and breathing, just breathing, because everything’s getting too close, too bright, too _much_ , and he feels like throwing up, and then pass out.

They stay silent for a couple of seconds, and then it’s Bruce who finally starts talking again.

“We can’t send him back.”

“We might not have a choice.”

“Of fucking course we have a choice!”, Tony hisses, “and we’ll decide to not send him back to those crazy motherfuckers, easy as that!”

“The Aesir might not agree with you, Man of Iron. If they learn Fenrir still being alive, they will thirst for his blood. They will demand revenge--”

“For fucking what? You just told us he never killed anyone!”

“The prophecy--”

“Fuck your fucking prophecy! I don’t give a shit about those stupid fairy tales, you hear me? If he never hurt anyone, they don’t have the right to fucking kill him just because _feel like it_! Jeez, what kind of people are you ruling up there, anyway?”

Thor has the decency to look slightly embarrassed, but Tony’s anything but satisfied. Quite the opposite, he’s fucking fuming! The thought of some angry mob storming his Tower and trying to kill the wolf has his blood boiling, and the urge to punch something, _someone_ gets almost overwhelming. Maybe the angry mob wouldn’t be all that unwelcome, after all.

“I agree with Tony”, Steve speaks up, straightening up and squaring his shoulders, “I believe in the concept of _innocent until proven guilty_. And, like Tony said: If Fenrir hasn’t killed or even hurt anyone, we can’t risk sending him back to that place. Especially if there’s no one who would be willing to take care of him.”

“But what are we going to do then?”, Bruce murmurs, asking the one question Tony doesn’t want to think about, because he’s just not ready for whatever might come afterwards.

Glancing towards the two assassins still huddled in another corner of the room, Steve clasps his hands behind his back and slips back into that annoying soldier stance.

“I’ll talk to Barton and Romanov. I doubt they’ll agree to keep this from SHIELD entirely, but maybe I can convince them to give us a little more time. You two keep an eye Loki, and Thor- If there’s any way, maybe you could try and reason with your people? I suspect they’ll want to come down and at least talk to Fury, and I’d like to postpone that meeting as much as possible.”

“I do not know wether the Allfather can be negotiated with, but I will try.”

“That’s all I’m asking. Bruce, I guess you’ll want to get dressed before anything else?”

Bruce smiles a little at that and nods, before gathering up the long cape (seriously, who the fuck would ever something this impractical for no other reason than _style_? Although Tony has to admit he might- But no, that’s not the point right now!) and padding through the living room.

“Guide him, J”, Tony mutters as an afterthought, before turning towards the soldier, “you’ve got an assignment for me, too? Cleaning the toilets? Scrubbing boots? Should I get my--”

“Tony. Just- Stop, for a moment. I know this isn’t easy for you, but I’m only trying to help.”

There’s none of the usual super soldier bravado, and that’s the reason why Tony keeps his mouth shut. It’s not... _Easy_ , for any of them. And they’ve all had a _long_ , _difficult_ _day_. They’re all feeling it, they’re all starting to wear thin, and it’s starts to show now. So yeah, he keeps his mouth shut. They stand silently for a few moments, just breathing and accepting, and Tony is just about to open his mouth and ask something rather stupid, when another voice pipes up again.

“If the Avengers were to grant me a small favor, I would ask for a private conversation with Stark.”

Everyone in the room turns towards Loki, who hasn’t moved an inch. Really, if the others hadn’t reacted as well, Tony would’ve thought he’d imagined it all. After a couple of seconds filled with silence, Loki finally turns around, but he’s looking straight at Tony, ignoring everyone else.

“Would you be willing to talk to me for a couple of minutes?”, he asks softly, green eyes tired and entire form exhausted.

Tony is still pretty much speechless, because that was the last thing he was expecting. The others seem to think about the same, and they all stare at the god sitting on the floor, all of a sudden no longer looking like an otherworldly being, but rather an exhausted, somewhat desperate single parent. That’s what does it, in the end. Before Rogers gets a chance to open his mouth again, Tony is already nodding.

“Sure. We’ll move towards the sofa, though. Kinda wanna get away from those windows, you feel me?”

It actually gets him a twitch of those soft looking lips, and then a small nod.

“Certainly. Though I would ask for our conversation to be private.”

Tony knows he shouldn’t, but he nods again. Rogers tenses beside him, but he pays him no mind as he presses a button and the suit folds back, allowing him to step out and stretch until his spine pops. Putting on yet another fake grin, he turns to address the rest of the Avengers.

“Alright, you heard the resident super villain! Mommy and Daddy are going to have a grown-up talk, so be good children and go to your room! We’re gonna call you dow for dinner, and if you behave, you’ll even get some ice cream!”

He’s met with angry faces, but he doesn’t care. Loki wants to talk, and although he feels his hands shake at the mere thought, he knows- He knows that it has to happen. There’s just no way around it, and maybe it’ll get him some of the answers he’s been looking for ever since the wolf came crashing into his lab. Turning back towards the god, he nods towards the sofa and starts walking ahead. When the others still don’t get moving, he makes an impatient shooing motion, pointing towards the hallway leading _everywhere else but here_. Of course, Rogers steps closer and leans in to whisper into his ear.

“Tony, do you really think this is a good idea? He’s still dangerous, and you’re not wearing any--”

“Okay, first of all, personal space”, Tony mutters as he pushes Rogers back until he no longer feels the man’s breath tickles his ears, “second: It’s not like you guys will be far away, and JARVIS is watching, anyway. And third... I don’t think he’s going to kill me right now. Got a feeling this is about something else.”

“If you’re sure--”

“Fuck no, I’m not! But I wanna give him a chance to tell me something. Might get us a few answers, who knows what kind of information he has. And if anything goes wrong, JARVIS will alert you. So, be so kind and fuck off already!”

With that, he pushes the Captain towards the hallways, and continues his way towards the sofas. Loki has already reached them, and is just sitting down, the boy still cradled in his arms, fast asleep agains his chest. Again, something twists in Tony’s chest, but he pushes it down and tries not to think about it.

This is not the time for shit like that. It’s time to finally get some answers.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I. Fucking. Did. It.  
> Alright. 12.000 words of almost entirely dialogue! Hope some things get cleared up, and I'm just sooooooo freaking glad I got it done in time ^^  
> Please let me know what you think, since this has been a long time coming, and I'd love to know if it meets your expectations! So yes, comments and kudos are greatly appreciated!
> 
> Hope you enjoy!
> 
> Love,  
> Goldie

As much as Tony would like to bombard their resident super villain with all the questions he _needs_ to get answered right the fuck now, that’s simply not possible. Firstly, because even he knows that it’d be just plain _rude_ (and okay, Tony usually doesn’t give a flying fuck about manners, not when it comes to the really important things, and this _is_ ), and he manages to keep his mouth shut, because this is not just about him and his need for answers (and wow, is that some _personal growth_ right there? He’ll have to make sure to call Rhodey later and tell him these _spectacular_ news). Secondly, there’s the rest of the Avengers. Those weirdos don’t seem to be in a hurry as they file out of the room, taking as much time as they please. Especially Barton and Romanov back glancing back towards them, not at all as subtle as Tony thought assassins were supposed to be while spying on people like him.

After another minute, he’s just about to get up and give them a piece of his mind (maybe put on the suit and throw them out with force), when Rogers finally motions for all of them to get out of here already. The good Captain throws him questioning glance, and Tony makes sure to roll his eyes excessively, just to show him how he’s _not scared at all, thank you_! It’s a lie, of course, or maybe not. Scared isn’t the right word, because what he told Rogers just about a minute before is still true: He doesn’t think Loki’s out to kill him, here. But that doesn’t mean his hand aren’t shaking ever so slightly as he waits for his teammates to leave, and finds himself wishing that they’d hurry up and take a little longer at the same time.

The good thing about this delay is that it gives him a little bit of time to study Loki, and by now the changes are immense, impossible to miss. His green eyes- And yeah, those are fucking green all of a sudden, what the fuck happened there? Anyway, his _green_ eyes are bright, clear, and no longer dead holes staring at nothing. Some color has returned to those ridiculously high cheekbones as well, and the manic grin has vanished, too. But most notable is the change in posture. No more careful movements, seemingly choreographed gestures, or strutting through the room with confidence and grace - Right now, Loki’s slouched on the sofa, comfortably leaning against the backrest as he cradles the sleeping boy against his chest, carding a hand gently through the kid’s blond hair. His legs are stretched out, and he has even leaned his head back, lazily looking towards the hallway, where the Avengers are still busy postponing their leave, but he doesn’t seem the least bit distressed by their presence. And again, Tony can’t help but think of a single parent, who’s just relieved because their beloved little spawn _finally_ fell asleep after a _long fucking time_. At least that’s what he images something like that would look like. Not like he’s ever seen a loving parental figure in real life, up close and personal. But Loki... As crazy, cruel, and megalomaniac he might be (or definitely is, Tony has seen the evidence just about _ten fucking minutes ago_ ), right now he looks like- A dad. A relived, exhausted dad, and that’s the last thing Tony expected to think before the day ended. Then again, he also didn’t expect the god to be a father at all, or his wolf to turn into a... A child. Said child is still curled up against Loki’s chest, breathing softly, and deeply asleep. Tony stares at the young boy, but there’s- Nothing. No connection, no recognition, just _nothing_. That’s a stranger to him, not someone he’d ever recognize, and definitely not the wolf he spent the last few months building friendship with. It’s a painful thought, and he almost wishes it was completely different. But there’s nothing he can do about it.

When he looks back up, Loki’s green eyes are locked onto his face, considering. Tony has to fight the urge to look away, because that’s one hell of a piercing gaze, and he isn’t sure- He’s not that sure about anything, anymore, and he can’t fucking wait to wake up and realize that the last few months have been nothing but a disturbingly realistic and detailed dream. And finally, the Captain leaves the door and pulls the door closed behind him. The silence that follows is deafening, and Tony almost wants to ask JARVIS to put on some music, to make some noise, to just distract him from the heaviness he feels settling around them. And they’re still staring at each other, which- That’s weird, right? Complete strangers shouldn’t just _stare_ at each other, right? Then again, this situation probably leaves behind the realm of everyday common courtesy, so Tony decides not to think too much about it.

“Well, we’re finally alone!”, he says after a more silent seconds, putting on a fake grin, “so... You wanted to talk to me? Start whenever you feel like it. Not like I’ve got anything else to do.”

The god doesn’t answer. He’s still busy staring, and wow, that’s getting kind of uncomfortable real fast. Those green eyes have a way of plunging right down into his soul, and while Tony keeps on grinning like he’s not giving a single fuck, he can feel his heart squirm. Finally, the god lets out a small breath as he lets his head roll back and looks down, brushing a gentle hand through the boy’s hair. There’s a small, soft smile playing on Loki’s lips, and he leans down to press a kiss to the kid’s head. Tony watches, and he feels- It makes something deep inside of him ache, something that he’s spent a lot of time burying and forgetting about.

“I thought he was dead.”

“Yeah, Thor- Thor told us.”

Loki nods slowly, pressing his lips into the soft, blond hair once again as his arms wrap just a little tighter around the kid’s slender form, as if he’s scared he’ll just vanish if he doesn’t hold on tightly. Tony wonders if that’s what actually happened, the last time around. Maybe. Doesn’t seem all that unlikely all of a sudden anymore. So yeah, he won’t blame the guy for being afraid of letting go.

“I thought I’d lost him.”

“I’m sorry. About that, I mean”, Tony adds when there’s no reaction, “must’ve been- Rough.”

Jeez, what’s wrong with him? _Losing you child must’ve been_ ** _rough_**? Someone better kick him in the mouth before he makes it even worse! Thankfully, Loki doesn’t seem like he’ll be the one kicking Tony in the mouth, as he slowly lifts his head and lets his head rest on the back of the sofa once again.

“It... Changed me.”

“Bet it did.”

“Life seemed... Pointless, once I heard of his supposed death. Dull, bleak, as if there was _nothing_ left at all. A black hole opening up inside of me and swallowing every last bit of happiness and love I’d ever felt.”

“Uh... Wow”, Tony mutters, because what the fuck are you supposed to say something like that?

He doesn’t have any children (and that won’t ever happen, no way in hell, he’s way too busy with his own trauma to project it onto someone else with his genes), and there’s no one in his life whose loss he could even begin to compare to _losing your child_. Sure, he’s got Rhodey and Pepper, and either of them dying in the near future would fucking break him apart beyond repair, but he’s got a feeling that it still wouldn’t even come near to what a parent feels when their child dies. So, he stays quiet. Loki does the same, staring at the ceiling, brushing a hand up and down the boy’s back, who only mumbles a little in his sleep and curls a bit closer, nuzzling against the god’s neck.

“He came to you.”

“Yeah. You got any idea how that happened, by the way? ‘Cause all I know is that he fucking _teleported_ into my lab, and then didn’t leave again. Wanna explain that to me?”

“I would if I had any idea how all of this came to pass, Stark. But I know as much as you do, at this point in time. Perhaps even less, as I have spent the last months believing him to have died on an island far, far away.”

“But- Wasn’t he with you? Before he _died_ , I mean? How’d he end up--”

“Are you not familiar with our stories, Stark?”, Loki asks as he shifts back around, looking at him with a raised eyebrow, “I am aware that your people have records of our origins, our lives and fates. Do you not know about my son’s... Destiny?”

Sure, Tony knows about- That stuff. No one gets through High School without at least hearing about norse mythology, but of course Tony never listened. He just wasn’t interested, because who’d care about fairy tales when you could spend your time learning about the actual reality? Never would’ve guessed that it ends up being that very opinion coming back to bite him in the ass.

“Uh... Not really, no. But Thor said something about a... Prophecy?”

Loki scoffs at that, bearing his teeth once again in a grimace. His arms unconsciously tighten around the sleeping boy in his lap, curling himself around his son just a little more, and Tony can’t help but think that that’s probably not his favorite topic to talk about.

“Oh, yes. That cursed prophecy! A völv a who came to Odin and foretold my son’s fate--”

“Guessing it wasn’t all rainbows and unicorns and shit?”

“It was foretold that he would bring the Ragnarök--”

“Gesundheit.”

“Which is what we call the downfall of our world as we know it, resulting in the deaths of many, including Odin, Thor and myself. Asgard will fall, and a new world will be reborn in its place. And my son was foretold to play a leading role in that tragedy.”

When Tony was about five years old, teachers, psychologists and scientists alike told his parents that he would accomplish great things. When he was about fifteen years old, they were still pretty sure about that first statement, though they also added that he might have a serious drinking problem as well (which he’d already had since he was fourteen. He was always ahead of his time). While his parents certainly didn’t appreciate that second statement, he’s pretty sure that’s a hell of a lot easier to swallow than being told that your beloved child will bring the doomsday of the world as you know.

“... Hm. Sounds... Difficult.”

“Oh, it wasn’t”, Loki answers with a sneer, “at least, not for the Allfather. He had made his decision before the day ended. Mere weeks later, they dragged him from the Palace, bound in a fetter that could not be broken, and brought him to that cursed island of Lyngvy. There, they chained him to the ground, and left him to rot and die, as even bound and gagged as he was, they did not dare try and kill him.”

Tony can only stare as the god trembles with rage, almost snarling with anger, which okay- Understandable. For a second, his eyes dart down to the kid sleeping peacefully in his father’s arms, oblivious to everything happening around him. A kid... Just a child, and even if Tony has no _connection_ to this kid, thinking about his wolf, in chains and imprisoned on an island, is enough to make his blood boil as well. Loki lets out a small breath, dropping his head forward to press a kiss to Fenrir’s forehead as if to calm himself. Seems to work, too, because when he blinks his eyes open again, he no longer looks quite as murderous. Still pretty fucking livid, but not like he’ll get up any moment and eradicate a small country, just to blow off some steam.

“You did not know, then?”

“No”, Tony hears himself murmur after a short moment of hesitation, “no, I- I had no clue. Just saw him, and he looked rough, to say the least. Was pretty close to dying, but we obviously prevented that. I decided to let him stay, just until he was out of the woods.”

“And yet he is still here”, Loki adds, cocking his head slightly to the side.

“Yeah. Because I didn’t know- I mean, where was I going to put him, anyway? I couldn’t just open the door and tell him run off into the sunset. He would’ve been killed the moment someone saw him--”

“You were concerned he would be killed.”

“Of fucking course I was!”, Tony exclaims, cringing when the kid mumbles again and curls closer to Loki, burying his nose in the god’s tunic.

Loki is still staring at him, an expression of wonder and surprise on his face. Even though he doesn’t know that guy at all, Tony’s pretty sure that it’s not an easy feat to get that sort of reaction from him. Makes him feel just a little proud, because who can say that he’s managed to throw the god of lies for a loop? He’ll definitely have to add that to his resume.

“Allow me to ask you a question, Stark.”

“Little late for that, but sure. Hit me.”

“Weren’t you... Terrified?”

“Of Sato?”

“Who is Sato?”

“Uh, Fenrir, I mean. Look, I needed to call him something, alright? And that song happened to come on, and Ozzie’s a fucking genius, so I just ran with it. He never seemed to mind, and the name just stuck.”

Loki’s still looking at him with- Is that fascination? Tony would like to think so (but why? That’s not- What he’s supposed to be thinking, okay? But he’s still hoping, in a way, as much as he doesn’t want to).

“I do not mind, Stark. In fact, I like the name. It has a nice ring to it.”

“Seriously?”

“Yes. Although I do not know anything about this _Ozzie_ individual you mentioned.”

“You should definitely read up on that guy. Got a feeling you might like him. And that song’s pretty good, too. An acronym for _Sail Across The Ocean_ , most people believe, and it’s based on- You know what? Do your own damned research, and then we’ll talk.”

There’s some sadness passing through Loki’s green eyes, but it’s gone with a blink, too fast for Tony to be sure. The god’s smiling ever so slightly again, but Tony isn’t all that sure how to take it. Even though they’re talking, he can’t shake the feeling that he’s missing about 90% of the context that’d help him make sense of all of this.

“But you weren’t terrified of my son, whatever you called him.”

“Oh yes, I was!”, Tony replies, and he actually has to chuckle now that the thinks about it, “pretty sure I pissed myself the first time he looked at me, and I spent about one hundred percent of our earlier encounters thinking about how easy it’d be for him to just- Eat me.”

“And yet you didn’t kill him.”

“Fuck no!”, Tony mutters as he crosses his arms and leans back, “I’m not the kinda guy to kick a wolf when he’s already down! No way in hell. I don’t kill for fun.”

“You could’ve just let him die, then, and be done with it.”

“Could you fucking stop talking about _your child_ like that?”, Tony hisses, because okay, back then he thought Sa-Fenrir was just a wolf, but hearing the kid’s own father talk about him like that is sickening.

Loki only shrugs tiredly, and Tony wants to- Scream, maybe, or hit a wall, or something. No one should talk about a _child_ that way, let alone the father. But then the god sighs, and when he looks back at Tony, there’s a weariness in his eyes that gives the engineer pause.

“I suppose it must seem... Cruel, to hear me talk in this manner. But you must understand, Stark, that my son has been treated with nothing but distrust, hatred, and disgust by most everyone else but myself. Learning that someone who had no reason to care about him decided to safe his life is... Surprising.”

“Surprising, huh?”

“You would not understand. I suppose none other than the Aesir ever could. After all, it is their realm that is to be destroyed, their king to be murdered by my offspring. You knew nothing about our world just hours ago. How would you know about--”

“Thor said they would kill him if he ever came back. Is that true?”

Tony wants Loki to tell that his brother (adoptive brother, whatever) was just being dramatic. That it’s not that bad, and the big guy just misunderstood some vital information. That’s what he wants to hear right the fuck now. Instead, the god nods without hesitation, and Tony feels bile rise in his throat. Looking down at the sleeping child, he can’t help but clench his jaw and curl his hands into fists. Who the fuck would ever kill an innocent child?

“Charming community you got up there. Anything else I should know? You into drowning kittens, too? Like to murder puppies for fun?”

Loki actually chuckles wryly at that, shaking his head softly, and Tony can’t help but think that it suits him a lot better than the scowling, the snarling and grinning like he’s about to skin you alive (then again, that’s not a good look on anyone, is it?).

“Oh, the Aesir like to believe they are the most sophisticated and noble race in all of the nine realms! You would be delighted by the hymns of praise they like to sing about themselves.”

“Sounds like you disagree.”

“That I do, and always have done. They are nothing but brutish, feeble-minded and bloodthirsty cretins. They hide behind their army and boast about their past victories, but there is little else worth mentioning. I despise them, and have for most of my life.”

Tony can tell by the bitterness in the god’s voice. Sounds like a lot of hatred that’s been growing for a while now. He’s heard shit like that before. Sometimes in his own voice, too. Nodding slowly, he can’t help but notice something interesting about Loki’s wording.

“You’re not including yourself in that statement, the way it sounds.”

The bitter, predatory smile returns to the god’s face, pulling his soft looking lips apart, showing off his teeth, ready to bite. Tony isn’t sure wether it’ll be him or the god himself. It’s hard to tell with these kinds of things.

“Thor hasn’t told you, then.”

“He mentioned that you were... Adopted.”

That forces a laugh out of the god, which sounds anything but joyful. Pretty bitter and angry, actually. Tony frowns and waits until the other man has calmed down again, still shaking his head.

“Oh, that stupid oaf. He was right, of course, though his wording comes... As a surprise.”

“Did he--”

“I am afraid it would take too much of our already limited time to explain that disaster as well. But rest assured: A disaster it was.”

“Yeah, I figured. Pretty much all of you kinda screams _disaster_ from a mile away.”

“I suppose so”, Loki muses, “I was always a little... Difficult, as my- Frigga would put it. Rather different from Thor, and far from the ideal of a prince of Asgard.”

“So, Thor was the golden boy, and you were--”

“The trickster, mostly. But that changed, at some point.”

“Why?”

This time, the smile that blooms on Loki’s face is... Beautiful. Warm and full of love, and as he gazes down at his sleeping child, Tony can already guess the answer.

“I became a father, and everything else... Nothing mattered as much as my child anymore. Everything else I’d deemed to be of utmost importance before suddenly faded away, and all I could bring myself to care about was my beautiful child.”

As if he senses the shift in his father’s mood, the kid mumbles something unintelligible and lets out a content sigh, snuggling close and rubbing his nose against Loki’s tunic. It is... Pretty cute, actually. Tony’s not the kind of guy to squeal over children of any kind (or anything at all, really, because he’s a self respecting man, he does _not squeal_ ), but yeah, that’s weirdly cute.

“And then I lost him.”

“How’d that happen?”

“Odin told me”, Loki whispers, leaning his forehead against Fenrir’s and quieting his voice to a point where it gets hard for Tony to understand, “after I... Found out that he wasn’t my true father, and Thor not my true brother. I was distraught, and when I turned to leave, he told me that Fenrir had died, just a short time ago. I was devastated, but I did not believe it yet. So, I travelled to Lyngvy, hoping to find him there... But he was gone, and the island had been burned to the ground, and the fetter lay broken in the ashes.”

“And you assumed that Odin--”

“He never would have let Fenrir leave”, Loki interrupts with a sigh, “he was determined to keep my son bound until the end of time. The only way for Fenrir to leave that cursed island was to die there. And so I believed just that had happened.”

For a split second, Tony tries to imagine what that must’ve been like: Traveling to that place, and finding it burned to the ground, convincing you that your child had died. All on his own, without you being there. He has to shake off the image, because that’s too much. No, he can’t deal with that right now, not- No. Tony just fucking _can’t_.

“How’d he get out, then?”

“I do not know. I have spent the last centuries trying to break Gleipnir, but to no avail. And I can think of no one who would be able to free Fenrir, let alone how he was able to find the island to begin with. You see, Odin had casted a great number of spells to make sure that no one would be able to reach Lyngvy, that no one would ever be able to find my son ever again.”

“But you still--”

“Yes, I managed to circumvent his barriers. It was not easy, even after all this time... But I always came to visit him, whenever I could. To heal his wounds, and to nourish his weakened body. I believe he would have died a long time ago if I had not done so, succumbing to the fetter’s own magic.”

“... Fuck.”

“You care”, Loki muses with a small smile as he looks at Tony, “you truly care about my son.”

“Don’t sound so surprised! It’s not like he’s a bad wolf, or anything.”

“But you couldn’t have known. Not in the beginning.”

“No. No, I didn’t. And yeah, I was terrified, and I was pretty sure I’d gone crazy when he first came here, and I must’ve been crazy to actually keep him a secret until now, but I still did it. Patched him up, kept him fed, hell, I even took him on walks on the beach!”

“But _why_ , Stark? Why would you do all that, when you were as terrified as you say?”

And this- This is where it gets a bit tricky. Because Tony remembers all of a sudden that this is not just some guy whose son he accidentally took in and cared for until now. This is the crazed super villain who tried to take over the entire planet, and would have, too, if the Hulk hadn’t used him to re-decorate Tony’s living room. And this is definitely not the person he should tell shit like that.

“Call it a temporary lapse of judgement.”

“And yet you decided to keep his existence a secret--”

“Well, not entirely. I mean, Rhodey knows, and now--”

“What did you see in him?”, Loki murmurs lowly, looking at him with that piercing gaze again, “there must have been something that kept you from distancing yourself... Something that made you _care_...”

But Tony doesn’t answer. This is way too personal to share it with someone who would use every single piece of information against him the moment it’d be to his advantage. They’re having a nice conversation, sure, but Tony is anything but naive. So, he only shakes his head and leans back a little further, staring the god down.

“Doesn’t matter--”

“Oh, I believe it most certainly does--”

“And I won’t tell you. Sorry, but you don’t seem all that trustworthy right about now.”

“I have been told as such. You will not answer this question, then, and I will respect your choice. But allow me to ask you something else: When did you stop being afraid of Fenrir?”

First of all, Tony did not expect the topic to be just dropped like that, and he almost wants to ask. Which wouldn’t be very smart, and so he doesn’t do that, because he’s still a genius, and he knows what he would get in return. Instead, he turns to think about the question he was just asked, and finds that he can’t really answer it.

He remembers being terrified, mostly. And he remembers flinching at every move the wolf made. But when did he actually stop feeling this way, and started to see different things? After he bandaged up all those injuries? When he fell asleep right next to the giant creature, without getting his leg bitten off for it? Or when they shared their first pizza? When did all the fear get exchanged with trust and--

“To be honest, I don’t know. Not like there was a certain moment where I was like _Hey, I don’t think that giant wolf is going to maul me_. Happened over time, and after a while, we were pretty close. He’s- Hard not to like, I guess.”

“Oh?”

“Don’t look so surprised! Not like I’m much of a- Wolf person, but he’s got a way of growing on people. Ask Rhodey if you don’t believe me! That guy called me all kinds of things and demanded I call the fucking army on this. But Sa- Your freaking kid just... I have no idea how he did it, but I wanna be able to do the same! Because after a while Rhodey just fucking _melted_ when that wolf looked at him!”

Tony has tried to accomplish that same thing for fucking _years_ now, and it never got him more than a smack upside down the head. Then again, Tony knows all too well that if Rhodey didn’t kick his ass on a regular basis, he’d be completely lost. Doesn’t mean he has to be grateful at all times, though.

“And, I mean- He never actually gave me any reason to be afraid of him. Sure, he looks- Scary, I mean, what kind of giant teleporting wolf doesn’t? But he never hurt me. Never threatened me, not even when I was busy _cutting away his rotting flesh_ \--”, and just a moment after he said it, Tony realizes that Loki probably does not want to hear about his son’s rotting flesh, “uh, and he was always so careful when I fed him pizza, and he actually woke me up when-- He was just always very... Nice, I guess. And I realized that after a while.”

“But why would you ever--”

“Oh my fucking god, would you stop it already?”

Loki blinks at that, clearly surprised at Tony’s outburst, but the engineer is just so fucking done with this, honestly!

“Why are you--”

“Would you fucking stop looking for a downside on this? Seriously, it sounds like you’re just looking for a reason that I’d be lying about any of this! Why would I do that? What would I gain from acting like I care about your kid? What good would that do me, huh? Honestly, is it so fucking hard to believe that I just genuinely like that wolf?”

“Yes.”

Tony blinks at that, and then the anger comes back, hot and bright, and urging him to just strike, to bruise one of those way too high cheekbones, and maybe knock out a few teeth as well. Yeah, he’s fucking pissed, and ready to let some of that rage out.

“You’re a fucking asshole!”, he finally hisses, barely managing to keep his voice down, “I thought you loved your kid! Why would I not like him, huh? Even as a giant wolf, he was one of the nicest... _People_ I’ve ever met! And you want to tell me that--”

“And again, you misunderstand.”

“Oh yeah? Pretty sure I got--”

“I have trouble believing”, Loki interrupts easily, “that after a lifetime of being hated, chased away and feared at the same time, my son would be so fortunate as to somehow end up with the one person in all of the nine realms who would see him for who he truly is. Do you truly believe that I am not aware that my son is made up of nothing but love and happiness? He always was such a bright soul, and even Lyngvy never managed to dim his light...”

The god hesitates, and then turns to look at Tony again, who is once again lost for words.

“They rammed a sword into his mouth. Did you know that, Stark? They said his howling was annoying them, and they wanted to silence him for good--”

“No, I didn’t know that. And I don’t wanna hear about it, either.”

It’s too much, simple as that. Tony doesn’t want to think about a small boy being chained down, about his wolf being left island to die on some godforsaken, about the time he spent there-- He knows way too much about torture as it is, and those images alone are enough to make him sweat, because he’s so sure can smell and taste blood, and feel the sand grinding between his teeth.

“You know so very little, human. And yet you took my son in, you treated his wounds, you fed him, you saved his life. You are a curious creature, Anthony Stark. And even though I am still hesitant to believe you truly did all of this out of pure and simple conviction, I want- I want to thank you. I want to thank you for saving my son. And not just for saving him, but for caring for him, too. For granting him a place where he could rest and heal, without being... Hated, for once in his life.”

“... Those Aesir really are some disgusting motherfuckers, huh?”

“You understand, then.”

“Well, you described them pretty impressively.”

They are quite for a few moments, just looking at each other, smiling ever so slightly. Why, Tony isn’t sure. There is not much to be smiling about right now, but he also doesn’t feel like questioning it. He has a feeling that it’d be better to just... Let it be as it is for now.

Loki’s eyes drift towards the other side of the room, and he turns to stare out of the window, gazing into the night sky. Tony takes that pause to take a few slow, deep breaths, relaxing his shoulders and cracking his neck. Fuck, even though this conversation is nothing like he feared it would, it’s still tearing on his nerves. Still a murdering maniac, after all, still a war criminal who killed thousands of people - Along with Phil, too. But that’s terrifyingly easy to forget as Tony watches Loki let out a small sigh, sinking a little deeper into the sofa as he rests his chin on top of Fenrir’s blond hair, rocking gently from side to side.

“He doesn’t look like you.”

“No, he does not. He comes after his mother. The blond hair, the golden eyes... He’s her spitting image. Not when it comes to his personality, though. They were rather different in that regard.”

“Is she your wife, or...?”

“No”, the god answers with a small, melancholic smile, “no, Angrboda was never my wife. She was much too proud to marry someone who was... Not the same as herself. But I like to believe that there was love, between the two of us. I certainly--”

The god breaks off at that, shaking his head ever so slightly. There is no bitterness this time around. Looks more like nostalgia, melancholy and love, probably. Tony also didn’t think he’d ever see something like that on the god’s face. It’s almost disturbing, because all of sudden Loki’s not just a crazed alien space wizard, but... Something Tony definitely doesn’t want to see, because it’d make everything just so much more complicated.

“You love her.”

“I most certainly did.”

“And now...?”

“Now, I can say that I still very much love her. But there is no future for us.”

“That... Sucks.”

“I would have worded it quite differently, but I agree with you, Stark.”

“Did she leave you?”, Tony asks, because he’s a nosy bastard and doesn’t give a shit if he’s overstepping some boundaries here.

Sue him! He’s been living in uncertainty for months now, and he’s frustrated, and he’s tired, his muscles are sore, his throat is dry, and his head is aching, and he just wants to know if the God of Lies is single or not (there’s a part of his brain that’s well aware that he should not be that interested in that single fact. The rest of his brain is busy shushing that small part, eagerly waiting for the answer he’s craving).

“No.”

“Uh- Okay. Did you leave her?”

“No, I did not leave her.”

“Then why--”

“It is not something I am ready to discuss with you, Stark”, the god mutters with a slight snarl in his voice, “but rest assured: As most parts of my life, our love ended in disaster as well.”

“That’s- Sorry to hear that. If it’s any consolation: I suck at relationships, too. Always end up ruining them, one way or another. So, you’re not alone.”

Why the hell did he just say that? Why the fuck would he let Loki- But then again, the god doesn’t look anything but mildly surprised at that confession. In the end, he slowly nods his head with a slightly furrowed brow.

“I suppose there is the possibility we are quite... Similar, in that regard. But, as things have unfolded, I am almost relieved it has ended before all of- _This_ came to pass. I would not have wanted to drag her down with me. Angrboda deserved much better than this. And I very much hope she found it, wherever she might be.”

This time, Tony keeps his mouth shut, because there’s some things you don’t need to ask or say. Especially when you can easily tell that nothing good will come from it. Instead, he decides they’re done with that depressing topic, and more than ready to move on to some of the other question he still has.

“Okay, I need- There’s some shit I need answered, too. And you’re the only one who can do that, so- You gonna cooperate here, or will I have to resort some less pleasant methods?”

“Hm... I would be quite ready to answer a few questions. If you were willing to serve me that drink you offered me quite a few hours ago.”

“That is a fair deal. Gimme a minute, I’ll fix us some drinks. And then I’ll demand some answers.”

Loki’s smiles softly at that, and Tony can’t help but return that smile as he gets up and makes his way towards the bar. Belatedly, he wonders if he should get someone to watch over the god until he’s back with the alcohol, but he dismisses the thought almost as soon as it comes. Loki doesn’t seem all that eager to leave, and anyway, JARVIS is watching, so there’s really no reason to worry. No, as Tony prepares two glasses of his more expansive (read: extremely expansive) scotch, he’s completely convinced that Loki will be exactly where he left him once he comes back to the sofa.

And he turns out to be right, because the god only turns to look at him with that same small, soft smile on his face when he gets back to the sofa, carefully reaching to accept the drink. Tony can barely suppress the shudder that runs down his spine when their fingers brush against each other. The god’s hands are surprisingly cool, and soft, too, and why the hell is Tony thinking about that right now? Shaking his head, he drops back into his seat, and takes a sip. Yes, getting something to drink was definitely the best idea he’s had so far today. He can already feel that pleasant, familiar warmth spread through his body, his shoulders drop, and his fingers start to tingle just little bit. Probably not the best idea to drink on an empty stomach after a day like the one he’s had, least of all in front of the man/god/person who defenestrated him just a few hours ago. But here they are, and anyway, Tony is too busy watching Loki take a cautious first sip to really think about responsible drinking (as he always seems to be).

“You like it?”, he asks when the god slowly lowers the glass, considering its content with a slight frown.

“A rather interesting taste, I must say. Very different from the mead they serve in the Palace. But I believe I like it a lot better.”

“Yeah, you should stick with me, then. I’ll educate you on Midgard’s finest alcohol. Kind of an international expert, on that regard”, he mutters as he exes his scotch and sets the empty glass down on the coffee table.

He gives Loki some time to take a few more sips and hum appreciatively, before he starts talking once again. They’re anything but done, after all.

“So. Those questions I was talking about.”

“I have not forgotten, Stark. So tell me”, the god replies lowly as he sets his glass down as well, “what is it you would like to know?”

Good question. Tony has about one hundred questions, and he’s not even sure which he wants to be answered first. Furrowing his brow, he takes a moment to look at Loki, and then at the sleeping boy in his lap. No sign that the kid will wake up any time soon, and Tony definitely doesn’t have a problem with that. Thinking back to the last two weeks, it’s probably a good thing that he’s sleeping now, finally resting after all that stress.

“He’s- Like you?”

“What do you mean by that, Stark?”

“He’s- Magical, I guess? That’s what you call it, right? Whatever it is you are doing.”

“Oh. Yes, magic. I take it from your wording that you do not agree with the term? Even considering how little you know about the subject?”

“There’s no such thing as magic”, Tony scoffs, crossing his arms as he leans back and stretches out his legs, “just shit no one was smart enough to figure out yet.”

“Is that so?”

“Sure. There was a time when humans believed that rain was magic. We’re a bit smarter today. Just took us a while to figure it out. Same with your- Thing.”

“My _thing_... Well, I would love to witness your attempts at _figuring it out_ ”, the god replies with a smirk, and Tony resists the urge to call him out on his bullshit.

After all, there’s very little he wasn’t able to understand and solve once he set his mind to it. One of his less incompetent teachers once called Tony a terrier - Once he bit down, he didn’t let go. That was a rather fitting image. He’s more than sure that if he got the chance to work with whatever Loki’s calling magic, he would solve that, too. Before he can say any of that, though, Loki starts talking once again.

“But that was not your initial question. You asked me wether or not Fenrir possesses magic as well. That, he does. Both his mother and myself do, and so he was bound to inherit it. Still, his magic is rather different from mine. He comes after his mother in that regard as well. His magic is less... Finely tuned, but more of raw, wild force that is tightly intertwined with his emotions.”

“I’m... Not really sure what that--”

“Perhaps I should give you an example. Compare your complicated set of armor to the raw power of that green beast. Rather different, aren’t they? You possess a lot more control over your assets, he has to rely on brute, sometimes unreliable force. It is much the same with Fenrir’s and my magic. I have spent centuries honing my craft and training to reach this level of skill. My son, on the other hand, never had much interest in doing so. He was happy enough living with what his heritage provided him with. Does that answer your question, Stark?”

“Think so, yeah. So, he’s just- Generally magical?”

“Indeed. Although our magic- It is rather a part of us than a separate entity. But I find it difficult to explain to someone who has never experienced it for himself.”

Tony nods slowly, but his thoughts are already running ahead, galloping after countless theories, and he has an idea, one that has been forming for a while now... Reaching forward, he grabs a tablet and taps for a few seconds, pulling up some of the graphs and recordings JARVIS has saved to the folder called _Wolfie Science_. And yeah, that name didn’t age well, did it?

“Here. Look at this.”

Loki frowns, but he does sit up a bit straighter to take the tablet from Tony’s hands, blinking down onto the screen. Obviously, he has no idea what he’s looking at, so Tony starts explaining right away.

“That’s some of the stuff JARVIS recorded over the last couple of months. Here, see that? That’s the energy that suddenly appeared on the scanners the moments Fenrir arrived in the lab. Nothing else could’ve emitting it, I checked multiple times. And it didn’t stay constant, you see?”

Loki nods slowly, watching as JARVIS highlights the most important parts. Biting his lips, the god pulls one hand from the boy’s back, taps the screen a few times, and actually manages to select what he apparently wanted to have at a closer view.

“Yes, I see. And your assumption was quite right: You managed to record his magic.”

“Awesome! I had a feeling about that, actually, but I needed confirmation. Those spikes, though, they made figuring anything out pretty difficult at the beginning.”

“Oh? So you figured it out in the end?”

“Fuck yeah, I did! It’s his way to communicate. He was trying to tell me things, since he couldn’t talk to me. Mostly when he was stressed out, or scared, but also when he was hungry, or just wanted company. We managed to single out those specific patterns, and translate them into short sequences that were easy to recognize. JARVIS was constantly scanning his energy levels, and sent me alerts. Here, to this watch”, he adds, stretching out his arm so that Loki can look at his accessory, “so I always knew what he wanted and needed. We got pretty good at talking to each other in the end.”

Tony grins smugly at Loki’s surprised face, because he can tell he actually managed to stun the god into silence. Quite the achievement, if he dares to say so himself. Loki has to take a few moments to swallow that, and then he nods once again.

“Quite impressive, I must say. I never thought there was a way to communicate with Fenrir without any magical abilities. But it seems that you managed.”

“Of course I did. I tend to get whatever I want.”

“And you wanted to be able to communicate with him.”

“I just wanted to understand him. Seemed like better approach than just letting everything happen, especially with someone of his size. Couldn’t risk missing his cues, and get my leg bitten off.”

“It must’ve been nice for him as well”, Loki muses with a fond glance down onto his sleeping son, “to be understood in return. That has never happened with anyone else. Even Thor never knew what he wanted to tell him, blind and deaf as he always was. And yet you managed.”

Under different circumstances, Tony would feel flattered. He can tell that Loki’s not the guy who easily appreciates other people’s achievements, but it sounds genuine enough (considering that he’s still the God of Lies, of course. Tony can’t allow himself to forget that). There’s something else, though, something that puts all of that into the background.

“He, uh- He understands.”

“Of course he does. Just because he cannot speak in his preferred form does not mean he is deaf as well.”

“Okay.”

But nothing is okay, nothing at all. Because Tony suddenly remembers all the things that he told _Sato_ , who he thought to be nothing else than a giant, loving wolf, who was just surprisingly good at listening. Now, as he looks down onto the sleeping child, he can’t help but cringe at the thought of confessing some really dark shit- _To a fucking_ _kid_. Wasn’t all just sunshine what he was confessing, either. He talked about his capture, torture, killing people, other people getting killed, alcoholism, shitty parents, his inability to sustain healthy relationships, mentioned that he was sometimes something that might be called suicidal but professionals... And all this time, it was just a kid listening to him lamenting about his trauma, his anger, his fear. And the kid listened, because he didn’t really have a choice, and Tony would laugh and joke about Sato being his therapy wolf-- Fuck. Motherfucking fuck, what the fuck--

“You noticed, didn’t you?”

“In a way, I guess. I mean, he was good at listening. But I didn’t know- Anything, about wolves, or animals in general. Just thought he liked hearing me talk.”

Loki is still smiling at him, and Tony almost starts to blush, which hasn’t happened for the last twelve years, easily. Usually, it’s the other way around, and he doesn’t see a single reason why that should change right now, only because a megalomaniac war criminal is fucking smiling at him.

“He most certainly does. Fenrir always liked to listen to me as well. I used to read at him, for many hours some nights. He tended to get rather... Restless, at times, and sometimes anxious, too. Having someone talking, reading, or singing to him always helped him to calm down.”

“Don’t think there’s ever been anyone who found my rambling _calming_.”

“Then Fenrir has been the first. As long as he trusts you, he would not care about what is being said.”

“So, you think he trusts me.”

“Do you not believe so yourself?”

Tony- Suddenly isn’t all that sure anymore. Just a few hours ago, his answer to that question would have been a resounding _Yes!_ , because there wouldn’t have been any doubt on his mind. _Sato_ trusted him, he was sure of that. He did his research, after all, since he’s not the kind of guy to just trust that mushy sort of feeling that welled up inside of his heart whenever the wolf would press his snout against his chest, rumbling contently when he’d scratch behind those ridiculously fluffy ears...

Now, though, everything’s different. It’s no longer about a wolf, but a child. And that changes everything, because it makes things so much more complicated, and Tony- Tony didn’t know. He didn’t have a single clue, and now here he is, sitting in his thrashed living room with the norse God of Lies and his wolf-newly-turned-human son.

“He _does_ trust you. He would have left a long time ago if he didn’t. But he chose to stay, simply because you made him feel safe. Fenrir has always been an excellent judge of character. You wouldn’t have been able to fool him, had you had any sort of ill intentions towards him.”

“Can’t lie to a wolf, huh?”

“No, you certainly can’t. Even I have found that I was unable to lie to his mother. They- She never told me how she knew, but she always did. And our son was just the same.”

“Sounds like a serious blow to your ego. I mean, with you being the God of--”

“No, Stark. I would never mind something like it. Quite the opposite, in fact. It was a relief, having to resort to complete honesty. As helpful as a carefully crafted lie might be at certain times, using those abilities of mine too many times... It changes your perception of truth as well.”

“You start lying out of habit?”

“Yes, that, too. But you also learn how easily some individuals can be manipulated, and how far they are willing to follow a lie that makes them feel better than the truth.”

“Maybe you should stop manipulating, then.”

“Ah, but it has brought me so much joy!”, Loki replies with a smug smile, “and it has been proven to be my most useful tool in achieving my goals. You must understand, I do not possess all those other qualities the Aesir regard so highly, such as raw strength or stupidity, which is what they like to call bravery. Though I would argue that my lies have brought me further than bravery has most of those fools.”

“But not with your ex.”

“Angrboda threw me to the ground, growled at me and close her jaws around my neck when I tried to lie to her for the very first time. It was a rather convincing argument to never attempt it again, afterwards.”

“Smart woman.”

“Oh yes. But in that regard, all wolves are the same. They do not appreciate lies or polished words, they only care for honesty. In the same way, they are unable to lie themselves. A fact which troubled Fenrir a lot”, he adds with a small chuckle, “for he was never able to keep a secret from me, if I asked the right questions. And a young and curious wolf has many secrets. But he did learn to... Omit the truth, I would say, to a certain degree.”

“Jeez, that must’ve sucked for him. Bet you were pretty strict.”

“I had to be. Fenrir has always been curious, full of energy and an endless need to explore those places he never should have come near. And he was... Naive. He never believed anyone would want to hurt him. At least, not when he was younger. It became his downfall, in the end. Those warriors found themselves an easy victim in my son”, he adds with a low growl, scowling as he curls himself around the sleeping child once again.

Tony cringes internally and tries not to think too much about that day. How those assholes dragged sweet, naive Sato from whatever Palace these people apparently live in, the wolf confused and scared, because he didn’t know what he did wrong, and didn’t have a single clue what was yet to come. Was probably better, at that point. Licking his lips, he decides that it’s definitely time to come back to those questions he wanted to have answered in the first place.

“He never tried to communicated with anyone else.”

“Hm?”

“Rhodey- He’s a friend of mine, and Sato- Fenrir never tried to communicate with him. Didn’t call out to him, not even once, or at least we didn’t notice, then. But I’m sure he trusted that guy, too. Why is that?”

“Ah, I forgot to explain it entirely, then. Fenrir learned rather early on in his life that whenever he called out to me with his magic, _my_ magic would answer in return. Therefore, he would never attempt to communicate with someone who wasn’t- How did you put it? _Generally magical_ , was the expression you used, I believe.”

“Uhm...”

That might be one of the weirdest compliments- That was a compliment, right? Can’t be sure with that guy, even if he winks at Tony, which is just so not appropriate, just like his reaction, consisting of a suddenly faster beating heart or slightly sweaty palms.

“Wh- What do you mean by that, exactly?”, he finally asks with a slightly scratchy voice, which he just knows won’t go unnoticed, not with that guy.

“Magic, as we experience it, is not just something you can measure with your scanners, but something which can also be _felt_ and _heard_ by those- Sensitive enough. Most other magical creatures would be able to do so.”

“What the fuck does _magic_ sound like?”

“I would describe it as a sort of humming sound, although that is a rather crude way of wording it. Whenever I was close to Fenrir, the sound of his magic would intensify, until my entire core would be vibrating with love and brightness. And no matter how far we were from one another, that sound, that _feeling_ never die out.”

“So... Humming?”, Tony asks with raised eyebrows, and the god nods.

“It is the only way I can explain it to someone who has no magic whatsoever about himself.”

“But you just said--”

“Do you truly not understand, Stark? I would have thought you to be smarter.”

That’s not something Tony likes to hear, and he’s just about to snap at Loki to stop being such a smug asshole, when something clicks. Of. Fucking. _Course_!

“So, it’s basically that energy being emitted that produces that humming sound?”

“Yes.”

“And I’ve got- It’s the arc reactor, right? _Of course_ it is! That masterpiece produces enough energy to power the suit, so of fucking course he’d notice! That’s what it is, huh? He heard the arc reactor, it was humming, and he thought I’d be able to communicate through it!”

Pretty weird coincidence, if you think about it. If Sato had landed anywhere else, he wouldn’t have even tried to “talk” with anyone - Hoping that whoever else would’ve found him wouldn’t have killed him on sight, that is.

“Completely right, Stark”, Loki smiles as he leans back against the sofa again, “I can hear it as well, at this very moment. Mind, it is a rather dull, simple sound, but it does come close to what another one’s magic might sound like. And Fenrir was possibly ready to cling to every last bit of hope.”

Tony has to think about all those times Sato nuzzled against his chest, or licked at the arc reactor. The engineer just thought the wolf liked the- Light? Like a night-light, in a weird, yet somehow endearing way. But if the wolf thought it was Tony’s source of magic, so he instinctively tried to get close to it, believing it to be what made it possible for them to communicate.

“Weird how these things happen.”

“A remarkable coincidence, I must agree.”

Tony usually doesn’t believe all that much in fate, but this is just a bit too much to _just have happened_. He doesn’t say that out loud, though. Got a feeling that Loki would tell him a few terrifying things about fate, because apparently they’ve got people up there seeing the future, and Tony just doesn’t feel like dealing with that right now. There’s just a limit to what one person can take, and he feels himself quickly approaching that limit.

“Your eyes are green.”

“You noticed, then”, the god answers with a small smile, “I was wondering if someone would.”

“Wasn’t all that sure in the beginning, but I’m pretty sure now. Just a few hours ago, you had bright blue eyes, and a thousand yard stare. Now, you’re talking to me like an actually sane person, and your eyes have turned green. What happened, there?”

“I am rather sure that if you think about the events of the last few hours for just a short moment, you will find the answer yourself.”

Tony blinks at that, and his first instinct is to say that he’s got no fucking clue about eye color, because that’s not something he usually pays attention to, and he’s not in the mood for stupid guessing games at this time of the day, when something starts to wiggle inside of his brain that very second. Blue eyes... Oh. Oh shit, oh fucking shit...

“Barton”, Tony finally chokes out, “Barton had blue eyes. And Selvig, too. After you used your glowstick of destiny on them. After you brainwashed them, so that they’d do whatever you wanted.”

“And when Agent Barton hit his head, the spell was suddenly broken. Do you see certain parallels in our stories now, Stark?”

Tony does, but he also knows that it can’t be true. Right?

No, this is just another of Loki’s schemes, a strategy to get him out of any punishment he knows is inevitable at this point. After all, he’s a sorcerer. Probably wouldn’t be all that difficult for him to change something as insignificant as his eye color. But even as he tries to convince himself of that very plausible theory, something tells Tony that there’s more to that story again. Because... When he thinks back to their first conversation in this very room, he remembers seeing things that didn’t quite fit into the image Loki was trying to sell. Things that seemed off, things that gave Tony pause long before the god had any opportunity to let him doubt the generally accepted theory of _Loki’s gone crazy and now wants to take over the world_.

“You’re a smart guy.”

“I am, yes.”

“Way too smart for the plan you tried to pull off.”

“Is that so?”

“Uh, yeah? That plan fucking _sucked_. Way too many things that could’ve gone wrong, way too much depending on coincidence and _luck_ , of all things. Thor told us what a gifted strategist you were, but that invasion? Sorry, that didn’t look like carefully orchestrated siege, that looked like a teenager throwing a temper tantrum!”

Loki looks amused by this statement, and Tony- Tony all of a sudden doesn’t want to follow that path of realizations anymore. He can tell that the god wants him to understand, but he doesn’t seem to care that Tony’s getting pretty tired as it is, and he doesn’t- He doesn’t want to know, okay? But he also can’t bring himself to back down now, and so he lets out a sigh and leans his head back, staring at the ceiling.

“Loki?”

“Yes?”

“Did someone do the same thing to--”

“Yes, Stark. Not exactly the same, mind you, as I was still somewhat able to make certain decisions for myself. But yes. That is what happened. It is also the reason my invasion looked, as you so eloquently put it, like a _temper tantrum_. For I did not care about victory or defeat. I was simply following orders.”

“Then what the fuck are we doing here?”, Tony hisses, sitting back up and staring disbelievingly at Loki, who doesn’t seem in any hurry to get up and _tell someone high up that he’s basically innocent_ , or at least not as guilty as it seems, “we’ve been wasting all this time talking, when we could’ve told--”

“Because it doesn’t matter.”

“It doesn’t matter?!?”, Tony yells, and immediately snaps his mouth shut when Fenrir lets out a small whimper and presses himself closer to Loki.

Loki in return glares at Tony, before leaning down and whispering into the kid’s ear until he’s calmed down again, slumping against the god’s chest. After a few more seconds of tense silence, Tony lets out a small breath and tries to calm himself.

“Would you kindly explain to me why you think that _you being brain washed doesn’t fucking matter_?”

“Because I do not plan on telling anyone. Other than you, of course.”

“But _why_?”

Loki lets out a sigh at that, and there’s that weariness returning to his frame, weighing him down, pressing him into the cushions. He doesn’t look at Tony when he starts talking again, but rather gazes out of the wide windows, eyes glazed over.

“It is a matter of justice. Or rather, justice as perceived by the Allfather.”

“Yeah, I didn’t get any of that. Wanna try again?”

“Odin is enraged”, Loki replies simply, “he believed me to be dead, and now I am back, and I made a fool of him for tricking his entire kingdom. Not only that, but Fenrir managed to escape as well, and Odin has not been able recapture him.”

“So, daddy dearest is pissed. Alright, got it. Go on.”

“No matter what I do, I will not be able to prevent my capture. Not with your merry band of heroes waiting just behind that door. There is no hope for me to turn this situation around. I will be caught, and I will be punished. I expect that imprisonment in one of Asgard’s darkest dungeons is awaiting me, at the very least.”

“Loving your optimism.”

“It is what it is”, the god sighs with a small shrug, “why should I try and convince myself of a poorly crafted lie that won’t come true either way? Odin is angry, and he wants justice. That is what he will tell his people, at least. In the end, he only wants someone to pay.”

“And you plan on being that someone.”

Tony can’t for the life of him understand why someone would just roll over and accept their fate. Giving up was never something he even considered, and he can only sneer at the people who do. And Loki- Well, he definitely didn’t expect Loki to be someone to accept shit like that without question, without at least _trying_ to change his fate. Honestly, he’s pretty disappointed.

“I plan on accepting the punishment I know I can endure in order to give my son a chance at freedom”, Loki replies evenly.

“And how the fuck--”

“Odin will never allow him to leave. Once he gets here, he will insist on dragging Fenrir back to Lyngvy, and this time, there will be no one to look for him, no one to fight their way to that cursed island, and he will simply _die_ there. But if I give myself up... Maybe Odin can be convinced to let Fenrir remain here, on Midgard. The argument could be made that he has not hurt anyone so far, and if you could vouch for him as well...”

The god breaks off with another sigh, shaking his head slowly as he brushes a hand through the kid’s blond hair, brushing a thumb over his temple. When he looks back up, his green eyes are filled with sadness and regret, and Tony has a hard time not looking away.

“Don’t you see, Stark? There is no way for both myself and Fenrir to be free after this, but if Odin gets his revenge, and if he can convince the Aesir that their king has restored peace and harmony once again... If he can drag the vile creature who tried to overthrow his kingdom in front of a court and lock him away in the deepest dungeon the entire realm has to offer--”

“He might feel generous enough to let Fenrir off the hook. Fuck, Loki--”

“I know that it is not my best plan. And I know that I might all be for naught, but I need to give my son a chance, small as it might be. It is my duty. After everything he has been through, it is my duty as his father. If it is a decision between my freedom and his, I won’t even have to think about it. This decision has been made long before he was even born, and it will forever be the same.”

Any moment now, any moment Tony is going to wake up after having fallen asleep at his workstation back in Malibu. Pepper will still be on the Seychelles, and he’ll suffer through a hangover from hell, and life will suck just a little bit, but it’ll be okay in the end. Not like this shit show of a nightmare, because none of this can be real, right? Right?

“So, that’s it? You give up without a fight, and hope that Odin won’t kill Fenrir the moment he sets foot into the city?”, Tony asks in barely more than whisper, because who’s to say that daddy dearest won’t just put an end to all of this?

“Would you let that happen?”

“Fuck no! You really think I’d just step back and watch a child get killed?”

“No, I do not believe so. But I needed to make sure, as it will be difficult to find allies for my cause.”

“That cause being not letting a kid get murdered by an angry old man?”

“Rather preventing the death of a child that is supposed to bring the end of an entire realm. But yes, I suppose you are right as well.”

“When you say it like that, it immediately sounds a lot harder to accomplish”, Tony murmurs grumpily, eyeing his empty glass and wishing he’d brought the entire bottle instead.

“But would you fight for him? If it came down to it- Would you stand up to Odin?”

And that’s just the question, isn’t it? Because they’re talking about a powerful god, and probably a pretty impressive army as well, and Tony- Tony is just a single guy. Then again, he’s not any guy. He’s Tony fucking Stark, and his decision has already been made.

“Of course I will. I’d blast Odin back to Asgard if it comes to that. And I doubt I’d be alone, too. Doesn’t matter how annoying he is, I’m pretty sure Capsicle wouldn’t let a kid get murdered on his watch, either. And Bruce might have to say something about that as well. As for Barton and Romanov- That’ll depend on other things. But they won’t side with Odin, I don’t think so.”

Of course, there’s still SHIELD to consider, but Tony’s anything but scared of them. He’s still got some A+ blackmail material on his hands, and if Fury dares to so much as look at Fenrir the wrong way, Tony will make sure that sad excuse for a pirate will regret not losing his second eye as well.

“So, you don’t have to worry about allies”, he adds after a small pause, smiling ever so slightly at Loki, who’s looking like he’s not sure if he can trust Tony at all, “you won’t- Well, not you, but your kid won’t stand alone. I’ll make sure of that.”

Even as he says it, he can feel a heaviness settle on his shoulders, because this is not just an empty platitude. This is a promise, almost an oath, and there’s no way he can break it without dire consequences. But there’s also no way he can take it back, doesn’t even want to, because how would he ever live with the knowledge that he didn’t try to save a fucking kid? And Loki- Loki is looking at him with wide, bright eyes, burning with hope and fear in equal measures, as if he can’t quite believe what he’s hearing.

“It’ll be- Okay”, Tony breathes when there’s no answer for several moments, “we _are_ earth’s mightiest heroes, after all. Time we put that title to the test, huh?”

“I... Suppose so”, Loki finally whispers, nodding slowly, “and I consider myself lucky to have been defeated by this very group of heroes, after all. It seems to have been yet another peculiar coincidence.”

They fall silent after that, and watch the night sky for a while. For now, there’s nothing left to say, and so Tony enjoy the small break to breathe deeply, and listen to Fenrir’s sleepy snuffles and mumbles, along with Loki’s content humming and quiet shushing. And for just a few precious minutes, it almost seems like everything might end up being more or less alright. At least, until the god opens his mouth once again, and reminds them both of the rather unpleasant reality they’ve found themselves in.

“As much as I have enjoyed our conversation to this point”, Loki mutters quietly, “I am afraid our time is running out. Your friends must be getting restless. And it won’t be much longer until... Certain parties arrive, too.”

“Those Aesir assholes?”

“Among others, yes. Your director will certainly want to join them as well.”

“Yeah... Yeah, guess you’re right. So, uh, is there anything else you wanna talk about? Got a feeling we won’t have much time once the cavalry gets here.”

Loki hesitates this time around, and Tony shifts uncomfortably, because this- This is the moment it gets the most difficult. He already knows what the god wants to talk about before the guy opens his mouth, and his eyes automatically dart to the kid, still sleeping peacefully, completely oblivious to the fact that his fate will be decided right here and now.

“From what you’ve told me so far- I take it there’s no distant relative or close family friend that could take care of him?”

“No. there is no one.”

“So, where would he go?”

He knows, of course. He’s just too much of a coward to say it out loud himself. Loki hesitates again, and Tony wishes he’d just get it over with, because he’s done waiting, and he’s tired, and he just--

“In this very moment, I have no other choice but to ask if you would allow him to stay here.”

Tony nods at that, because he wasn’t expecting anything else. And he knows that if Loki had any other option, he wouldn’t ask. Let’s face it, Tony is pretty much the last choice when you’re looking for a long term babysitter. Yet here they are, and somehow Tony just knows what it all comes down to.

“He trusts you, he feels safe in your presence. And I trust you to keep him safe and well, until... Until he is ready to leave you. No one else would, as far as I can tell.”

“Thought so.”

“I am under no illusions that it would be easy for you”, Loki continues quietly, “and I am aware that you could ask for a much easier task. And yet, I must ask you, and no one else.”

Tony is not a kid person. He was also not a wolf person until a few months ago, but he doubts the first fact is going to change as easily. He sucks at taking care of himself, let alone anyone else. There’s a reason he built himself a couple of more or less useful robots instead of getting a pet, or even a potted plant. He’s amazing at inventing and repairing and modifying things, but not with _people_ , or _relationships_ , or _emotions_ in general. All in all, he’s the last person who should ever be asked to take care of a fucking child, who has already seen its fair share of trauma, and even if he was, he doesn’t really want to. Tony values his freedom, doesn’t like to be tied down, and isn’t all that good at planning around anyone else but himself. Without JARVIS, he’s pretty sure he’d be dead already, and even with the AI, his life expectancy is getting shorter by the day. Iron Man certainly doesn’t sound like a good idea, either, and there’s the fact that Pepper still doesn’t know about Sato to begin with. No, it’s a really bad idea to take the wolf in for good, because it can only end in disaster, he already knows. After all, Tony Stark finds a way to fuck up any relationship, if given enough time, and this one probably won’t be the exception to the rule.

“Okay. I’ll do it.”


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So sorry for the delay! Last chapter was pretty exhausting to write, and this one turned out to be not much shorter... But here it is! I really hope you enjoy, and I'm sorry for the sadness. Not all that much happiness to be found here, I'm afraid...  
> But yeah, here it is, and I hope you enjoy!  
> Comments and kudos are always very much appreciated, I'd live to know what you think :)
> 
> Love,  
> Goldie

They timed it pretty well, because less than a minute after Tony mutters that (life-changing, all encompassing) promise, there’s a beam of light coming down from the sky, crashing into the street down below with a mighty crashing sound. Tony jumps to his feet and races towards the windows, staring down. Loki, on the other hand, only lets out a small sigh as his gaze follows the engineer, and he watches the man stare in wonder and confusion.

“I believe the _cavalry_ has arrived, Stark.”

“Uh, you sure? ‘Cause the last time there was a beam of light coming out of nowhere, we had a slight--”

“I am sure. That is their way of traveling. The Bifröst. You just witnessed its working.”

Tony keeps staring. As the light fades away, he can see a few figures stepping out of a small ring. One of them seems to be sitting on a horse, and that horse looks a little... Weird. He’s just about to call for JARVIS to get him some security footage so that he can take a closer look, when he realizes what that means. They’ve run out of time. Slowly turning around, he watches Loki look down at Fenrir’s sleeping form with eyes full of sorrow, and his throat goes tight and dry. He _knows_ what will go down now, but that doesn’t make him feel any better. Usually, he’s glad whenever he can go into any situation being as prepared as he can be. Not this time, though. This time, he wishes he had no idea about what is going to happen next.

Loki now presses another kiss to Fenrir’s forehead, before slowly leaning down to whisper into the kid’s ear. The boy mumbles something, and tries to snuggle down into the god’s chest once again. Loki smiles at that, and Tony gets a feeling of familiarity, like this is an well-known ritual between those two. Still, the god keeps whispering, nudging the kid’s temple with his nose, until finally the boy grumbles unhappily and blinks his eyes open. For a moment, he just blinks and yawns, and then- Then it apparently all comes back, because his golden-brown eyes widen, and a moment later he throws himself at his father again, letting out a high-pitched whine. Tony cringes at the sound, and also at the way Loki hugs his kid close again, because this- This is none of his business.

Lowering his gaze, he quietly makes his way through the room. He’ll give those two a moment. He knows it won’t be long until Loki will be gone for a long, long time ( _forever_ , a bitter voice whispers into his ear, but he shakes it off immediately). Straightening back up, squaring his shoulders and forcing himself to _not start thinking_ , he pulls the door open and steps out into the hallway - And promptly into Captain America’s very firm chest. Spluttering,he stumbles back and quickly pulls the door closed behind himself. Big mistake, judging by his teammates’ faces. They are all there, with Rogers right in front of him, Thor and Bruce a few steps to the left, and the assassins to the right, looking at him with distrust and interest in equal measures. Of course, it’s them stepping closer the moment the door falls shut.

“Are you insane, Stark--”

“Ugh, relax, Barton”, he mutters with an eye roll, crossing his arms, “he’s not gonna do a runner.”

“And you can just be sure about that?”, Romanov asks, but Tony ignores her completely.

He hasn’t forgotten her comments, and she’ll get what she deserves - No attention at all for the foreseeable future from Tony. Instead, he turns towards Rogers, who’s looking at him with a confused expression. And are those- _Puppy eyes_? Jeez, when Capsicle tries that, it’s suddenly a lot less cute. Still, it’s enough to make him sigh and rub a hand over his face.

“He won’t run, okay? Guy’s just glad he’s got his kid back. Said kid just woke up, and I wanted to give them a minute. We saw them arrive”, he interrupts as Rogers opens his mouth, “and Loki knows what’s about to come.”

“Why would he stay, then?”, Natasha asks lowly, and Tony--

For a split second, he just wants to tell them. He wants everyone to know that Loki actually isn’t as guilty as they would’ve liked to believe, and that they better come up with a completely new battle plan, because things have changed, okay, and that there’s absolutely no reason to open the doors for Odin and his goons, so why don’t they just let down the blinds and act like no one’s here?

But he knows that Loki would not appreciate that at all. Wouldn’t matter that Tony only wants to help, the god wouldn’t hear that. Hell, he’d probably throw Tony through another window! And even if he reveals everything he now knows- Who’s to say that anyone would care? And if things get more complicated, there’s a real danger that Loki’s original plan would be in actual danger. If he’s not as guilty as everyone believes, he loses his bargaining chip. It wouldn’t be as much of _justice being served_ , and they’d have to come up with a compromise. But a compromise won’t get Fenrir his freedom. And, after all, that’s what really matters. That’s _all_ that matters. And so, he keeps his mouth shut. He doesn’t tell anyone about brain washing, about lies, about wolves, about being a father and making sacrifices for your children, in the hopes that they’ll have a better life than you, and all the other things they’ve been talking about. It’s no one else’s business, anyway.

“Look, he’s just talking to his kid. JARVIS is watching, we’re right here, there’s some norse army of justice down on the street, SHIELD is probably already there, too--”

“They are, in fact. Fury is just talking to Odin about- Everything. We just wanted to come and get you, so that we could join them.”

Tony feels bile rise in his throat, but he tries not to show it. He knew that this was going to happen, after all. And now, he’ll have to make good on his promise. But he can’t talk about this with everyone here, so he lifts his head and looks at the assassins. Rogers follows his gaze, and he seems to understand, because he addresses the two of them a moment later.

“Barton, Romanov. Think you could go and talk to Fury? We’ll join you in a few minutes, but I want to be up to date when that happens.”

Both assassins take a moment to look at each other, but finally Barton nods and turns towards the stairs. No more elevator, after all. Natasha looks at them with a piercing gaze for a few more seconds, but then she, too, turns away and follows Barton. Tony watches them go, and he can’t help the sigh of relief when they vanish from view. Then, he turns towards Thor with a tight smile.

“Would be great to have you done there, too, Point Break. Maybe talk to Asgard’s Number One Dad, try to get a feeling for the situation. Maybe try and soften him up a bit, too, if you’re already there.”

“I do not believe the Allfather--”

“Well, I think you should at least try, big guy!”, Tony interrupts, clapping a hand onto the god’s shoulder, “it’s the thought that counts, and all that. C’mon, off you go. And the rest of us will be down in just a few minutes, cross my heart and hope to die, so don’t have too much fun without us!”

Thor looks like he only understands about 30% of what’s being said, but Tony doesn’t feel like re-wording any of this. So, he simply pushes the god anything but gently towards the stairs (judging by that guy’s build, Tony’s urging probably feels more like a soft breeze rather than Tony putting most of his muscles into the push), until Thor finally trots down the stairs as well. Good. As much as Tony would like to talk to that norse deity as well, he a) lacks time to have yet another lengthy conversation, and b) he doesn’t think Thor is the right guy to include in the conversation they’ll now have instead. Taking a deep breath, Tony turns to look at the remains of his team - The constipated looking Capsicle, and the finally re-dressed Bruce Banner. Awesome. He’s fucking _doomed_.

“What’s going, Tony?”, the Captain asks lowly once Thor’s steps have faded away, “what did you want to talk about with us?”

Bruce stays quiet, but he does take a couple of steps closer, so that it’s just the three of them in a small circle. And yeah, what the fuck is Tony going to tell them, now? It’s not like this is delicate matter or anything, not like there is something extremely precious on the line. Sighing deeply, Tony shakes his head and forces himself to start talking.

“Okay, so long story short: I need your help. And it’s not about me, or about Loki- It’s about the kid. About... Fenrir.”

That name still taste kinda weird, but he can’t bring himself to call that boy _Sato_ , either. That isn’t Sato, after all. It’s _Fenrir_ , and this is about him, and Tony doesn’t really have the time to hesitate the way he does right now, because there’s a small army waiting literally right outside his home, and he won’t face them without having made sure that there’s someone to back him up.

“Look, he’s- He’s just a kid, right? And he’s never hurt anyone, not on Asgard, and not on Earth, either. But Loki’s told me- He’s afraid that Odin will drag the kid back to wherever they had him before. And that wasn’t a good place, let me tell you--”

“Thor already did explain that part of the problem”, Rogers interrupts with a frown, “and Bruce filled in some of the rest. We know... What he’s been through.”

That’s- Great. Because looking at the two of them now, he can tell they’re both pretty affected by those stories. Rogers has put on his most disapproving face, and Bruce is looking just a little green around the nose. Yeah, it’s good to see them get sightly worked up over this, because it’ll make it easier to convince them to stand up for Fenrir (if he even has to convince them, that is). Also, if they didn’t give a shit about that boy’s fate, Tony’s pretty sure he wouldn’t ever want to be in the same room with either of them (which would be alright when it comes to Rogers, but a real shame because of Banner).

“Loki thinks that Odin might want to kill the kid.”

“What?”

“Either that, or chain him down on some island again. Whatever it is, if that asshole gets his way, the boy is doomed. I don’t know about you, but I don’t plan on letting that happen”, he adds as he straightens up some more and crosses his arms across his chest, “over my dead body.”

“We agree”, Rogers replies with a small nod, and Bruce does the same after a second.

“Good. Because I’m gonna need your help.”

“Of course. What’s the plan?”

Tony’s just a little bit floored by the readiness and lack of question that his statement is met with, but he gathers himself and keeps going, because this is going well so far, and he can’t miss this chance. Also, time’s kinda running out, and he really doesn’t want to be interrupted before they’ve talked all of this through.

“Loki and I talked about it. He’ll give himself up without a fight, and in return he’ll ask for Fenrir to be allowed to stay here, on Earth--”

“With you?”

“Yeah”, Tony replies, lifting his chin and fixing Bruce with a challenging look, “he’d be staying with me. He knows me, he trusts me, and I’ve got the means to actually house him. I mean, it’s been working out so far, and no one’s died!”

“That’s a pretty low--”

“Yes, I’ve heard that one before! But that won’t be any of your business, anyway. All that you’re needed for right here and now is to vouch for the kid. I’ll testify that he hasn’t hurt anyone here, either, and you guys- I dunno, you could swear that you’d keep an eye on him and sweep in heroically in case he loses his shit some day, or something like that. I wanted to ask Thor as well, maybe he could try--”

“I wouldn’t count on that, Tony”, Bruce mutters lowly, frowning towards the stairs, “we had a short talk as well, and he- I don’t think he’d stand up for Fenrir. Seems more like he’d support Odin’s decision.”

“... Really?”

“As far as I can tell, he believes in the prophecy. He doesn’t necessarily _like_ what will happen because of it, but he won’t object to it, either. So I don’t think you should count on his support.”

Tony just stares at them both, and then wonders if he still has the time to suit up and fly down to the street, where he’d spend about an hour beating that God of Assholery’s face in. What the actual fuck? Did he really read the guy completely wrong? Sure, Thor’s weird and loud and seems a little clueless most of the time, but this- This is definitely not something he thought was possible. Related or not, he was _fucking_ _there_. He watched Fenrir grow up, and probably spent some time with the kid/wolf/whatever, and even if he didn’t, he still had to have believed that the boy was his nephew. How the fucking hell--

“But we’ll vouch for him. Of course we will”, Rogers finally breaks the silence, “he is a child, he hasn’t hurt anyone. And he shouldn’t be made responsible for his father’s crimes, either.”

Tony has to actually bite his tongue to keep from spilling his newest secrets once again, because he desperately wants to tell Rogers that they’ve got it all wrong, and that they better get someone who’s more competent at this than he is to clear some very important things up, and and to get it done yesterday at that! But again, he keeps his mouth shut. Because even he understands that this is not about anyone else but Fenrir. The kid needs any chance he can get, and if that means his father has to give himself up, Tony’s got no fucking business to argue against that plan.

“Good, that’s- That’s good. You think there’s any chance that Fury would agree to something like that?”

Both the Captain and Bruce cringe at that, and yeah, Tony knows that’s a pretty optimistic approach, too. He’d definitely prefer not having to face that guy ever again, but he’s also not dumb enough to think that it’d be possible to pull all of this off without considering SHIELD. After all, that pathetic excuse of a secret agency’s Papa Smurf will be Odin’s contact person down here on Earth, and those two parties will be the ones who need to reach an agreement. Shame that Fury will most likely not have any interest in letting Fenrir move in with Tony without a single word of protest.

“I know we need to convince him, too. But SHIELD can’t get their grubby hands on Fenrir either, alright?”

“We already agreed on that. If there’s nobody else--”

“Believe me, there really isn’t--”

“Then he’ll stay with you, or nothing else. And we’ll vouch for both of you”, Rogers adds with a confident nod, “but if Fury isn’t be willing to--”

“Don’t worry about that, Capsicle. I’ve got some really convincing arguments in that case that I’ve actually been _dying_ to use. Trust me, he won’t have much of choice if he wants to keep that little organization of his running.”

Both men look slightly alarmed at that, but neither of them wants to ask. Probably better this way, since Tony is in no hurry to share his secret weapon with those two. Instead, he allows himself a short moment of relief, because apparently he won’t be alone in this, after all. He’s just about to actually thank them both in advance, when Rogers puts a hand to his earpiece and listens with a frown. Tony sucks in a breath and stares with trembling hands as the man’s face grows darker with each passing moment, and he nods tersely every other second. Then, he straightens back up and lets out a sigh.

“That was Barton. SHIELD has agreed to hand Loki over to Asgard, provided that they can guarantee he’s safely contained and won’t try something like this again. They’re also talking about possible future cooperation, with Thor as some kind of mediator.”

“And Fenrir?”

“Hasn’t been mentioned yet. Romanov told Fury about him, apparently, but Odin hasn’t said a word. They’re asking for Loki now, and probably won’t wait for much longer.”

Tony’s heart stumbles at that, and he has to swallow to not throw up right then and there. He’s usually got a much stronger stomach, but this- This is bringing even his olympia-gold-level organ to its limits. It’s time, he knows. But he also knows that he definitely doesn’t want to open that door and tell Loki he’ll have to stop talking to his kid and now face judgement day - Including a probable life long prison sentence, with no chance of visitation days, Tony’s pretty sure. His thoughts must show on his face, because Rogers puts on a sad smile and places a hand on his shoulder.

“Do you want me to--”

“No. No, I’ll- I’ll go. Don’t think they’d appreciate anyone else barging in. How about you guys go ahead? We’ll meet you downstairs. Just, uh, just make sure no SWAT team comes up the stairs. That probably wouldn’t go over well.”

“Are you sure--”

“Look, it’s- It’s a giant shit show, alright? But he knows that he’s got no other choice than go through with it, and he won’t fight it. Just- Let’s not make it any harder for them than it already is. You go on, we’ll be right there.”

He doesn’t wait for them to agree, just turns around and puts a hand on the door handle. His fingers tremble ever so slightly, and that’s not something that usually happens, either. Sighing deeply, he lifts his hand to knock, and then slowly pushes the door open, slipping inside before the others can protest.

The scene hasn’t changed all that much since he left the room just a few minutes ago. Loki and Fenrir are still sitting on the sofa, though the kid is no longer on the god’s lap. He’s dressed now, too, in sweatpants (they’re too long, and so the legs have been rolled up several times) and a long sleeved shirt (sleeves are too long, too, the kid’s fisting them in his hands, and the collar’s almost hanging off on one side, revealing a slightly too prominent collar bone), and that’s- Good, mostly. They’re still huddled closely together, and Loki’s whispering into the boy’s ear, carding a gentle hand through his kid’s hair.

Again, Tony feels like an intruder. Not a nice feeling, not at all. And again, he’d much rather turn around and leave the room, because he doesn’t want to be the one to break this off. But someone has to, and better him than anyone else. Not like there’s anyone else left, anyway. Taking a deep breath, Tony forces himself to start moving, slowly making his way towards the sofas. Just as he’s about to reach them, Loki lifts his head and looks at him with a somber expression.

“It is time.”

“Yeah. We’ve been trying to give you some time, but that’s over now. They’re waiting for you guys.”

Loki nods, and Tony’s eyes dart to kid who’s pressing himself against the god’s side. Fenrir. The boy’s eyes are filled with tears, cheeks red, lips bitten, and he’s still trembling ever so slightly. After a few moments, he blinks, and lifts his head to look at Tony. There’s- There’s a small shift, a short moment of stillness, and Tony feels a jolt run through his core. It’s the eyes. He knows those eyes. Golden-brown, wide and frightened, and those are the same eyes that looked into his on that fateful day, down in the lab in Malibu. Yeah, this is Fenrir, but he’s Sato as well. Although, it’s still pretty difficult to understand that in all its depth. Still, Tony does his best to smile (and it’s not the fake, cheerful version he’s been using way too much lately), and crouches down.

“Hey, kiddo. Remember me?”

Fenrir blinks a few times, biting his lip as he leans even further into Loki’s side, who wraps an arm around his slender shoulders. After a couple of seconds, he nods hesitantly, and even manages a little smile as well. It’s a watery, shaky thing, but it’s there nonetheless.

“Good. You feeling better now?”

Fenrir hesitates at that, and ends up shaking his head slowly. Tony keeps the smile on his face and nods.

“Yeah, thought so. But we kinda gotta get going now.”

A shudder runs through the child, and he shakes his head, turning to look at his father with pleading eyes. Loki only smiles sadly and pulls Fenrir against his side, pressing a kiss to the boy’s forehead.

“You know it has to happen, my sweet pup.”

Fenrir shakes his head again, and Tony feels like crying himself. There’s nothing good about what’s gonna go down in the next hour or so. Sure, Loki will be locked up, but he’s no longer sure that’s a good thing to begin with. And the kid apparently knows what’s about to happen, which is just so fucked up in itself, and here’s Tony, just trying to get through the day. Before he can ask Loki one more time if he’s sure he doesn’t want to just... Disappear-- And why the fuck would he even suggest something like that, after all the effort they put into capturing in the first place? But yeah, he kind of wants to suggest that those two just- Leave. But before that can happen, Loki lets out a deep breath and lifts his head again. This time, his green eyes are filled determination, and... Resignation. It’s not a good look on him, Tony can’t help but note.

“We are ready, Stark.”

“Good. The others are already downstairs.”

“Did you ask for--”

“They’ll vouch for him”, Tony interrupts with a nod, “Rogers and Banner, at least. We’re not sure about Romanov and Barton, or SHIELD in general. At the moment, it looks like...”

He breaks off at that, because Fenrir is looking at him with wide, fearful eyes, and discussing the kid’s father’s future imprisonment could probably be considered rather traumatic. Cringing internally, he gets back up to his feet (and why the fuck are his knees crunching like that?) and decides to keep his mouth shut for the time being. Loki gets up as well, and then takes both of Fenrir’s hands in his. The kid hesitates, looking unsure, but his father simply pulls him to his feet - And the boy promptly collapses against the god’s chest.

“Jesus, is he okay?”, Tony gasps, taking a step forward (to do what exactly? Not like he’s got a plan or something when it comes to kids).

“Yes, he is quite alright. But it has been a long time since he has last moved in this form. It... Takes a little while to get used to.”

Tony nods dumbly, because there’s nothing else he can do, and then watches as Loki helps Fenrir find his balance on wobbly legs, wrapping an arm around the kid’s slim waist, pulling back slightly. When it seems like the boy won’t fall over again in the next few seconds, the god lifts his head and looks at Tony once again.

“We are ready. Would you escort us downstairs?”

“That’s what I’m here for. We’ll go slow, don’t worry”, he adds when he notices Fenrir’s worried expression, “but we’ll have to take the stairs, since you, well...”

No need to finish that sentence. Instead, he turns and starts walking through the room. Slowly, of course, because he can hear the shuffling, hesitant movement behind his back, and it’s easy to tell that Fenrir’s still having trouble walking. It’s okay, though. Not like he’s in a hurry, while at the same time, he’d love nothing more than to get this over with. When he reaches the door, he pulls it open and then waits until Loki and Fenrir have shuffled through, shutting it behind them. Together, they walk down the hallways and towards the stairs- And that’s where it gets tricky. Tony has just set foot on the third step, when Fenrir lets out a distressed whine, which makes him turn in an instant. The kid’s started to tremble again, pressing himself against Loki’s side, looking as though he’s never seen anything scarier than those few flights of stairs. Given his current situation, that might be true. Tony has no idea what it feels like to suddenly have to walk on two legs after going (ha!) through centuries on four paws. Might just be something he won’t experience in the near future, either.

“You think maybe he should stay--”

“No”, Loki sighs with a shake of his head, “no, he- he has to come with us. There is no way around it.”

“But are you sure--”

“We will manage. Right, Fenrir? Come here, pup.”

With that Loki, bends down and lifts the kid up, who readily snuggles into the god’s chest, nuzzling his neck and closing his eyes with a small sigh. Loki smiles down at his cuddly kid, and then nods at Tony to continue down. The engineer does his best to smile back, and then turns to start walking again, even though he’d give anything to just stay here and forget about invasions and aliens and gods and brainwashing and all that shit.

The way down seems to stretch endlessly, and Tony swears to himself that he’ll have the elevator repaired ASAP, because he’s not the kind of guy to waste his precious time _walking down stairs_. Then again, it’ll probably be a while before he can get some company to work on his elevator, considering how much repair work will have to be done in the entire city, most of it a lot more urgent than his need for a comfortable way up to the highest floor...

“What was it you wanted to tell me before?”, Loki asks lowly after a few floors, and Tony raises his eyebrows.

“I don’t think it’d be a good idea--”

“He is not listening. And I would prefer it to know what I will have to brace myself for. Please, tell me what you know.”

Tony throws a glance back, looking at Fenrir, who really doesn’t seem all that aware of what’s happening around him. He’d still prefer to not say anything, but Loki does have a point- Always better to go in prepared. And so, Tony tells him.

“Right now, it looks like you’ll be shipped off to Asgard. Got a feeling that Fury’s all too happy to get rid of you, so he won’t put up a fight. No one’s mentioned Fenrir so far, though Romanov told him about the kid. But Odin hasn’t said anything.”

“The Widow... I was wondering if she would be the one to ruin everything...”

“She won’t”, Tony mutters with a frown, “she might try, but I doubt it. Not her style. Sure, she’ll side with SHIELD, but she won’t actively try to get him _killed_.”

Tony’s pretty sure about that. They might not agree on most things, but she’s not intentionally cruel. She’s just doing her job, and sure, that job often seems to solely consist of annoying the shit out of Tony, but no- She’s not cruel. Not into killing people for fun. She’s way too cold and distant for that.

“Asgard’s dungeons, then... I must admit, it is not the brightest outlook.”

“Would you prefer to stay here?”

“I am not quite sure. Perhaps. The Aesir are rather... Strict, when it comes to their prisoners. Then again, I have little experience with being imprisoned on Midgard.”

“Apart from that little stunt on the Helicarrier.”

“Oh, yes”, Loki grins mischievously, “and I must say, I might just prefer Asgard’s cells. I expect to be left in solitude there, at the very least. The visitors I received were quite... Exhausting. I do not enjoy that sort of _noise_.”

“... You’re a picky sort of prisoner, huh?”

“I suppose so. But I am only joking, of course. I know all too well that there won’t be many choice in my future.”

“Think you might be right about that.”

“I most certainly am. Still, I have made my choice, and I will not complain.”

“Don’t think that’d do you any good, either. But complaining could still be fun! I mean, if you wanna--”

“No, that will not be necessary, Stark. I will not waste the rest of my time in freedom with useless complaints.”

There’s not much Tony can say to that. Loki’s probably right, but still- It’d be kinda nice to hear the guy lament about his future. Anything would be better, really, than this stoic acceptance. That’s actually sort of unnerving. Tony’s never met anyone this... Accepting of their fate. Of course, Tony can’t be sure how much all of this was Loki’s fault/doing after all, but he has a feeling that a lot of this disaster could be explained by the fact that his kid was taken away and imprisoned for no reason other than a shady prophecy. Doesn’t seem like that’s going to be considered, though, and the god doesn’t complain about that, either. Which is... Disturbing, too.

“Do you ever get visitors in those... Dungeons?”

“No, I will not. Other than interrogators, of course. I believe there will be a lot of questions, after all.”

“So, no chance you’ll ever see him again?”

“I would say so”, Loki muses thoughtfully, “then again, until a short while ago, I was also convinced there was no chance he would ever leave Lyngvy. Yet here he is. And I was not of the belief that he would find another home, far away from Asgard. Yet here you are. My perception of what _impossible_ truly means has shifted a lot during the last few hours.”

Not much longer now, Tony can’t help but think, just a few more floors, and they’ll step out onto the streets. Just a few more minutes, and then they’ll have to face the music. And Loki’s still holding his head high, walking confidently as he cradles his trembling child to his chest, not at all looking like he’s walking towards his downfall. Might be the crazy shining through, or maybe Tony just wants to think so. Things would be a lot easier if Loki was a maniac. He isn’t, though, not right now.

“Does he know?”

“Yes. We... Talked. I explained the situation to him.”

“Did he- Say anything?”

“He asked me if he could come with me.”

“Oh. As in--”

“Follow me back to Asgard.”

“Into the dungeons?”

“Yes”, Loki whispers with a dark expression, “he begged me to let him stay by his side. Even if it meant yet another cell.”

Tony swallows at that, because... Well, it’s probably not that hard to understand. Kid has no one left but his father, and said father is now going to give himself up. Must be a pretty shitty feeling. Scary, too. Or maybe terrifying is the better expression for it.

Before he can say anything else, they finally reach the ground floor. Looking through the glass doors, Tony can already see the sizable gathering on one of New York’s busiest (now completely deserted) streets - Half of it SHIELD agents (once again wearing sun glasses, because why the fuck not?), half of it looking like... Yup, those are definitely space vikings, there’s just no other way to put it. Fucking space vikings right in front of his door. Loki comes to a halt beside him, and they both just stare for a couple of moments, each of them dreading what’s about to come.

“This fucking sucks.”

“I find that I quite like your way of wording things, Stark. This truly _fucking sucks_.”

That makes Tony snort, because hearing Loki curse like that is freaking hilarious. But just a moment later he sobers up again, because this- This is actually no laughing matter. The first agents are starting to turn around, and Tony spots the rest of his team on the other side of the street, along with Fury and Hill. Rogers raises on eyebrow, and Tony nods curtly. Time’s running out.

Loki seems to realize that, too, as he bends down and whispers into Fenrir’s ear. The kid shudders, and tries to curl into himself even tighter, but the god won’t let up, until the boy finally blinks his eyes open. There are already fresh tears running down his cheeks, but before he can start crying again, Loki lowers him down to the ground, keeping a tight grip on his waist until he’s straightened up again. It’s a shaky stand to say the least, and Fenrir’s clinging to Loki with all of his strength, but he doesn’t collapse this time around.

Tony watches as the kid’s eyes drift around, and then lock on the crowd right outside. There’s a moment of pause, and then he shrinks back in horror, and Tony can just about guess who Fenrir has spotted. Odin’s not easy to overlook, of course. Looking like a japanese fantasy version of Santa Clause, he’s sitting on top of a massive horse (a horse with eight legs at that. It says a lot about Tony’s day thus far that this fact is worth nothing more than a tired acknowledgement), his one eye keeping watch over the entire gathering. Yet another person with an eyepatch that seems to be out to ruin Tony’s life. There seems to be a pattern here...

Fenrir whimpers, stumbling back a few steps, but Loki holds onto his hand tightly, pulling him back to his side.

“No, Fenrir. We cannot run from this. You know that we can’t.”

The kid lets out a distressed whine, desperately tugging on his father’s hand, but Loki only pulls him closer, cupping the kid’s face in both hands and leaning down to look directly into his golden, tear filled eyes.

“You have to be strong, my beloved pup, as you have always been. I know you are scared, but I promise that nothing is going to happen you. No one will hurt you, no one will try to put you in chains again. I promise you. Just come with me, and everything will be alright.”

Fenrir’s eyes narrow at that last sentence, and lets out weird sound - Sounds like a cross between a bark and growl. Loki chuckles at that, brushing his thumbs over the kid’s cheeks, wiping away a few stray tears.

“After all this time... I truly should know better than trying to lie to a wolf ever again. I am sorry, Fenrir. But I can promise you that I will do anything in my power to keep you safe.”

This time, the boy only nods, pressing his lips tightly together as the tears start to fall again. Loki shushes him quietly, brushing away the tears and carding a hand through the kid’s blond hair, before straightening back up again. Tony can see the god’s pulling himself together, slipping on a mask of indifference before taking Fenrir’s hand in his, intertwining their fingers.

“Stay strong now, my sweet pup. Not much longer now, and it will all be over.”

“And you won’t be alone.”

The kid blinks at him at that, and Tony tries to smile. Pretty sure it comes out a little shaky, but he doesn’t bother going for the fake kind. Fenrir has already proven that he’ll see right through that, and he doesn’t want to lose what little trust the boy might still have in him. After another moment, Fenrir wipes away the last few tears, shakes his head and then looks up at his father, nodding with determination. Loki smiles, pulling the kid against his chest one more time, squeezing him tightly.

“My brave little boy”, the god whispers, “you were always so much stronger than I ever was. Come now, we cannot wait any longer. Stay close to us, and nothing bad will happen to you.”

Tony’s not sure how he feels about being included in that statement, but he won’t question it, either. Not the time. Instead, he decides to take the initiative, and starts walking towards the door. Listening closely, he can hear Loki and Fenrir following - A little slower, a little hesitant on the kid’s part, but they are behind him. Before he can think about it any longer, he reaches out and grabs the door handle, pushing the doors wide open, so that they can all step outside.

A silence settles heavily over the entire street at the very moment they leave the Tower, and immediately all eyes are on them. Every last bit of conversation dies out, and they’re left with those stares, and the occasional whisper that follows them down the street. It’s not the kind of spotlight Tony enjoys, and he’s usually not that picky when it comes to attention. This time, he’d prefer it if no one was watching them, especially not Fury and evil Santa Clause, who follow every move they make with their (combined, single) set of eyes. Tony stares back, because he’s not going to back down already, and resists the urge to stick out his tongue. At the same time, he makes sure to slow down so that he can walk right beside Fenrir, on the kid’s left side, because he can _see_ the boy trembling, even though he’s doing a good job at walking in a straight line. Thankfully, there’s no SWAT team moving in, no special forces running towards them to take Loki down. Instead, the SHIELD agents move out of the way as they make their way towards the middle of the crowd. Fenrir start shaking harder and harder the more people close in around them, but Loki only squeezes the kid’s hand without moving his gaze from the two most important figures - The two pirates staring right back at them.

“Easy, kid”, Tony murmurs, stepping a little closer so that his arm brushes against Fenrir’s once, twice, “no one’s gonna hurt you. And if they try, your dad and I are gonna kick some ass.”

He’s not sure if Fenrir even hears anything that he’s said, but he does take a few breaths and straightens up just a bit. Before he can think about if that’s a good sign or rather a signal that the kid’s quickly approaching paralyzes, they reach the center of action. They come to a halt besides Fury, and while Barton and Romanov remain at the director’s side, Rogers and Bruce use the opportunity to subtlety move over to stand beside Tony. Weirdly enough, that gives him a good feeling. He’s still not used to not standing alone in situations like this. But it’s... Good. While Capsicle is looking stoically ahead, Bruce actually takes a moment to look to the side and smile at Tony. Yeah, it’s good. What a surprise.

It’s almost like stepping into the eye of a storm. The noise is gone, and there’s a weird kind of stillness all around them. All that’s left is their little group, and the tension that weighs them all down. Fenrir’s shaking so hard that Tony’s worried the kid will fall apart any moment, staring at Odin like a bunny at a snake that’s about to strike. Odin himself is looking at Loki, along with Thor, who’s standing by his father’s side, looking anything but empathetic or the least bit troubled about this entire situation.

_Traitor_ , is all Tony can think, even though he has no foundation for that accusation, it stubbornly remains, _you_ ** _fucking_** _traitor_.

He’s about to say as much (because with someone like Thor, a single glare won’t be enough to convey such a complex emotion such as _rage_ ), when Odin Assfather finally opens his mouth.

“Loki Odinson.”

“Allfather.”

“You are accused of invading Midgard, endangering the peace between all the nine realms, and attempting to bring chaos and doom to the kingdom of Asgard. Do you admit to these crimes?”

“I do”, Loki answers without a moment of hesitation.

Tony feels a shudder run through Fenrir’s entire frame, and without thinking he reaches down to grab the kid’s free hand. It’s cold, clammy and shaking, but the kid grips back with enough force to almost make Tony wince.

“Then you will be brought back to Asgard, where you will answer to the realms Highest Court. There, your sentence will be decided.”

“I accept, Allfather.”

Tony can tell that Loki’s acceptance comes as a surprise to most people/ space vikings. The majority doesn’t show it (at least there’s something those sunglasses are good for, after all), but even so he can feel a murmur run through the entire crowd. It almost makes him feel triumphant, because there’s just something about throwing these assholes for a loop- But then Fenrir squeezes his hand once again, and he remembers what all of this actually means.

Odin stays silent for a few seconds, watching Loki with cold, calculating eyes, and Tony can’t help but think about parents again. Fathers, especially. If that’s the way Loki used to be looked at throughout his childhood, it’s a miracle he’s even able to love his own son as much as he does. Then again, Tony has no idea about the family dynamics of the royal space vikings. And _again_ again, he doesn’t really give a fuck. Finally, the King’s eyes drift towards the kid by his side, and he feels Fenrir tense all over, clinging to both of them with all his strength as he tries not to shy away. Tony doesn’t even hesitate before he steps halfway in front of Fenrir, because something about that gaze just feels plain cruel, and no child should ever be looked at like that.

“ Fenrisúlfr. Still alive, I see.”

“None thanks to you, Captain Obvious”, Tony hisses, straightening when he feels the kid press ever so slightly against his back, “and don’t stare at him like that! Your parents never tell that’s impolite?”

Odin turns to look at him at that, and Tony feels like an insect under a magnifying glass. It’s a shitty feeling, but not one that makes him cower in fear. Instead, he feels himself grow even angrier, feels his blood boil and his jaws clench.Yeah, maybe it’s a good thing Odin’s looking at him like that, because it gives him all the more reason to fucking hate that guy.

“And who--”

“Tony Fucking Stark, your Shittyness. Don’t worry, I know all about you, no need to introduce yourself.”

Out of the corner of his eye, he’s pretty sure he can see Loki’s lips twitch. As stoic as the guy might act, Tony can tell that’s all it is- An act. Of course, who’d actually stay cool when faced with imprisonment for life? Admittedly, Loki’s doing a pretty fucking good job at acting, but Tony can tell that it’s a close thing.

“This is your doing?”

“What, you mean saving a kid’s life? Yeah, I’d say so. Wouldn’t have been necessary, of course, if you hadn’t tried to kill him in the first place.”

Odin raises his eyebrow at that, and Tony has the uncomfortable feeling that in this asshole’s one eye, he actually _is_ nothing more than an insect under a magnifying glass. Not like he cares, of course. He’d be delighted to show Odin just how fucking wrong he is. Before he can open his mouth, though, Odin turns back to look Fenrir, who’s peeking out from behind Tony’s and Loki’s backs.

“You escaped from Lyngvy. How did you manage to break Gleipnir? Tell me, wolf, right this moment--”

“Woah, now, you calm the fuck down--”

“He does not know”, Loki quickly interrupts, stepping forward, “I asked him, but he does not know. He woke up to find--”

“I believe I asked _the wolf_ , Loki. It is not your place to answer, as I am aware that he, other than yourself, is not able to lie. Now, tell me, _Vánagandr_ ”, Odin says lowly as he stares at Fenrir, who lets out a tiny whine at that name, “how did you break Gleipnir?”

Fenrir whimpers, but he only shakes his head, gripping Tony’s hand even tighter, trembling from head to toe. Tony’s actually getting worried about the kid’s safety, when Loki steps forward once again.

“Allfather, he is unable to speak at this moment, as he has spent centuries in his other form. If you could try--”

“Loki, you should know better but to interrupt _yet again_ \--”

“For fuck’s sake, it’s really not that difficult! Just ask a _yes_ or _no_ question, then he’ll be able to tell you. Jeez, how dense are you?”, Tony growls, glaring at Odin, who looks at him again.

This time, there’s a little more disgust and frustration, which Tony decides to count that as definite a win. The more irritation he can cause, the better. Especially when it comes to people of authority. He’s always had a problem with those types. For a moment, he wonders if Odin will just- Turn him to stone, or grill him on the spot, but instead, the god turns away with a frown, and faces Fenrir once again.

“Tell me then, Fenrisúlfr. Did you break Gleipnir yourself?”

The kid shakes his head without hesitation. Odin’s frown deepens at that, before asking another question.

“Do you know who did, then?”

Another shake, and Tony can tell it’s not what Odin wanted to hear. With a dark face the god straightens back up, looking down at the boy with barely concealed disgust.

“And yet you decided to leave the island, and managed to escape, as well as--”

“Are you actually trying to convict him for that?”, Tony hisses, ignoring the worried glances from both Rogers and Bruce, “because let me tell you, Papa Noel, escaping from _imprisonment_ and _torture_ is not what we fucking consider to be--”

“Stark! This is really none of your business!”, Fury barks now, and Tony whips around to glare at that one-eyed bastard as well.

“Yes it is! Because he’s trying to paint the kid as the guilty one, here!”

“That still does it not make your--”

“Director Fury”, the Captain steps in, “we have reason to believe that Odin plans to imprison Fenrir once again. We are very concerned about the child’s safety--”

“Oh, cut the bullshit, Rogers! We’re worried that boy’s gonna get fucking murdered by that old maniac!”

As far as diplomacy goes, Tony doesn’t think he has all that much talent for it. That suspicion already arose in his early childhood, but it’s only now that he’s one hundred percent sure that it’s one of very few fields he is completely ungifted. Whatever, not like he’s all that much into kissing ass, anyway (not in that way, at least).

Fury looks.. _Constipated_ would be one way to put it, but Tony is under no illusion that he’s feeling bad for the kid still hiding behind himself and Loki. Taking a deep breath, the director clasps his hands behind his back and turns towards the Captain.

“Do you believe Stark’s statement to be true?”

“We have multiple sources confirming that Fenrir has been imprisoned and tortured for a long time already. The same sources confirmed that the boy has never hurt anyone, neither on Asgard, nor here on Earth. He is- Just a child.”

“A child that can turn into a giant wolf, according to some of my agents.”

At that Tony makes sure to glare extra hard at Barton and Romanov. They don’t really look like they glare, let alone turn to ash like Tony was hoping they would. He’ll have to work on his death glare, it seems. Better put that on the agenda as well, right after getting his fucking living room floor fixed, along with the elevator, and his entire life.

“With all due respect, Director”, Bruce now pipes up, “but he is not the first person with special abilities we have encountered. And other than most of us, he actually doesn’t have any blood on his hands.”

He looks pointedly at the assassins at that, and at Fury as well, which is a fucking genius move, and Tony wants to congratulate him right this second by kissing him on the lips. He doesn’t, of course, but he puts that on his agenda as well. Fury stares at them all for a few moments, before turning towards Tony again with raised eyebrows.

“And what would you have me do, then?”

“If the Allfather were to agree”, Rogers says before Tony gets a chance to open his big mouth and ruin everything with just a few choice words, “we would like to keep Fenrir here, on Earth. He has been here for months, now, and has shown that he is not violent or vindictive at all. Stark, Doctor Banner and myself would be ready to vouch for him, and also keep an eye on him for the duration of his stay.”

“And you think I’d agree to that?”, Fury asks with a dark grin, and Rogers is just about to respond, when Tony decides that this is the moment he’s been waiting for.

“Oh, you will.”

“Is that so, Stark? Why would I do that, huh? After all, it’s not like I’m currently looking to make my life even harder than it already is. And allowing a creature like him to stay, after all the shit his daddy pulled over the last few days--”

“You’re still going to allow it”, Tony murmurs with a dark grin, “because if you refuse, I’ll tell JARVIS to release every single piece of information I pulled from your servers. We’ll flood the entire internet, and everyone will know your deepest, darkest secrets. I’m sure the public would just _love_ to read all about your super special SHIELD plans, don’t you agree?”

There’s a vein on Fury’s forehead, and it’s starting to twitch now. Even if the director’s face remains stoic, that little vein is telling Tony everything he needs to know. Yeah, he’s got him now, and Fury knows it, too. It’s just a little hard for him to admit.

“You’re bluffing.”

“Nope, I’m most definitely not. Not my style, you know? Bluffing is for idiots who can’t actually deliver. But you seem pretty sure about that, so how about we play a game? _You_ don’t agree to my conditions, and _I_ upload all of your dirty laundry in about... Two minutes, I’d estimate. And trust me, even if you put all of your little minions on the job, they won’t be able to get it down ever again. I’ll make sure of that.”

That vein starts twitching again, and Tony can’t help but grin. Yeah, it feels pretty good to fuck Fury over, and he’ll enjoy it as much as he can. There are a few seconds of silence, and then Fury lets out a small sigh.

“Where would he stay, then?”

“He’ll stay with me. But you won’t have to worry about anything- Other than make sure World’s Number One Grandpa over there actually lets him stay. We clear?”

Fury looks about ready to tear Tony’s head off (and he probably would, if it didn’t make him look a lot less level-headed in front of his goons and those Asgardian douchebags), but he does nod and turns to look at Odin.

“You get all of that?”

“Indeed”, Odin replies, “but I will not allow the Vánagandr remain on Midgard. He will be brought back to Lyngvy, and chained with another fetter. A stronger one, which will hold him to the remainder of his life. You humans might believe to understand, but you know next to nothing of our world, and we--”

“Maybe. But _we_ got laws that protect children here, you know? And I’ve got the child’s father right over there”, Fury adds with a nod towards Loki, who actually nods back, “who’s asking us to keep his child safe from someone who just openly admitted that he plans to imprison. A. Child. That’s not something we can just let slide.”

Odin’s expression darkens with every word Fury’s says, but the director doesn’t back down, doesn’t even seem to notice the god’s growing anger. Or maybe he’s just ignoring it. Tony’s getting the impression that the one thing that pisses those guys off the most is being ignored. Probably not something they’re used to. Fenrir squeezes his hand, and Tony squeezes right back. Yeah, that kid’s going nowhere. He’ll make sure of it.

“Now, we would be ready to take said child off your hands. From what I gather, you’ve been having problems with him for a while now, and we’re offering you an easy way out. Kid stays here, you won’t have to worry about him anymore. Everybody wins.”

“I must say, I highly doubt you Midgardians would be able to contain the Fenris-wolf”, Odin sneers, and Fenrir shudders again, pressing himself against Tony, who makes sure to press right back, “he is the bringer of doom and death--”

“Yeah, so why would you want to bring him back to your kingdom? Wouldn’t it be better to let him stay here, far away from your realm? We’ll keep an eye on him for you, and should he actually manage to escape, we’d be more than happy to help you bring him down.”

Fenrir lets out a whimper at that, and Tony’s wants to punch Fury in the face, because that’s not something you should ever say about a child, especially when it can actually _hear every single word_. He keeps quiet, though, because Odin seems to be actually considering this, and Fury actually offers another argument.

“We’d actually consider this part of your reparation. An act of goodwill, showing us that not all of you are murdering lunatics out for blood.”

Tony wants to argue that the fact that they’re actually arguing over the murder of an innocent child is a pretty clear sign for just that, but he bites his tongue and tries to remember that they’re almost there. Breathing deeply, he brushes a hand over the back of Fenrir’s hand, and almost wishes he could Loki’s hand as well, weird as that would be. After all, while they’re still discussing the kid’s fate, Loki’s future has already been decided, without much of an argument.

Finally, after a few tense seconds, Odin slowly nods.

“I would be willing to allow the Vánagandr to remain on Midgard. Under one condition”, he adds before Tony can explode into a boatload of glitter confetti, “he must remain in his current form. And his magic is to be bound.”

Loki gasps at that, and Tony guesses that’s a pretty shitty condition from their point of view. Sure, he didn’t really believe that Odin Assfather would make it easy for them, but judging by Loki’s reaction, this is a lot worse than he expected. Indeed, the god steps forward, looking at his supposed father with pleading eyes.

“Allfather, please, could you not--”

“I will not be swayed, Loki. Bind your child’s magic here and now, and he will be allowed to stay on Midgard. Refuse, and he will be brought back to Lyngvy, as soon as the dwarves have forged a new fetter. Make your decision, but make it quickly. I will not wait any longer.”

Loki clenches his jaws at that, and Tony can tell that he wants to argue, to yell and scream, and maybe poke out Odin’s second eye while he’s at it. He doesn’t, though. After a few seconds, he slumps, lets his head fall to his chest- And nods. There’s a glint in Odin’s eye as he watches Loki turn towards Fenrir, cupping the child’s face in trembling hands. When Tony looks into the god’s eyes, he is shocked to see them filled with tears, close to spilling over. Okay, so this must be a really shitty thing to demand. Swallowing, he turns around as well, trying his best to shield the two of them from the prying eyes of Fury, Romanov and Barton. This is not something that needs any extra witnesses. He wishes they could’ve done all of this inside as well. There’s just something so vulnerable, so intimate and private about it all, and having all those idiots just stand there and stare as if it was nothing more than a mediocre TV show, rather than an actual tragedy, makes nausea rise in his throat. No, it shouldn’t be happening this way. Shouldn’t be happening at all.

“Fenrir”, Loki whispers as the first tears start to roll down his cheeks, “I am so sorry. Do you understand? Do you know what has to happen?”

The kid whimpers, letting go of Tony’s hand to grip both of his father’s wrists, holding on tightly. He’s crying as well, shaking from head to toe, but he’s still standing, still holding on. Tony’s got a feeling that he won’t last much longer, though. There’s a limit to how far you can push someone, and Fenrir--

“I am so sorry, my sweet pup. I am so sorry that I have to leave you, but there is no other way. Believe me when I tell you that I would do anything to stay with you, and I wish- I wish we didn’t have to say goodbye so soon again.”

The kid cries out at that, clawing at his father’s hands, desperately trying to get closer, but Loki won’t let him. Instead, he takes a few deep breaths and waits the boy out, holding him still until Fenrir’s looking at him again, still sobbing quietly.

“I have to bind your magic now, little one, and you into this form. I know”, he whispers when the boy starts to cry louder, shaking his head desperately, “I know you are scared, but there is no way around it. I will make it quick, and it will be over before you know it. Afterwards, you will stay here. You will remain at the Tower. Stark- Anthony will look after you, and he will keep you safe. Trust him, Fenrir, and do as he tells you. Then, you will be safe. And that is all that matters to me, Fenrir, because you are the most important thing in my life. I love you with all my heart, and that will never change. And I would do it all over again if it meant that you can finally be _free_.”

Tony can barely stand to look at the kid, because he’s crying so hard he’s almost falling apart, gasping and sobbing as he clings to his father, desperately fighting for each breath as he starts hyperventilating as well. Loki doesn’t wait for his son to calm down, though. Instead, he takes another slow, deep breath, and then closes his eyes.

For a moment, nothing happens, but then a shudder runs through both of them. Fenrir’s silent for just a few seconds, eyes wide, tears still running down his cheeks, mouth slightly open- And then he starts screaming. Tony jumps back at the sound, heart racing and ears ringing, because it’s such an intense, horrifying sound as the kid throws his head back, trembling, shaking, and it looks almost unreal, like the worst of a violent seizure, and that sound, that fucking sound...! And Tony stares, because he can’t take his eyes off of Fenrir’s shaking form, ears ringing and heart stumbling, and he wants to turn away, wants to run back inside and hide under his bed, and forget-- But his legs are glued to the ground, and his eyes won’t look away, and then it’s already over. As soon as it started, it ends. Loki blinks his eyes open the same moment Fenrir’s roll back in his head, and then the kid crumbles. The god catches him easily, pulling the limp boy against his chest, carding a hand through the light blond hair as he takes a few deep, shuddering breaths, pressing kisses to Fenrir’s cheek and whispering soothingly. Tony has to blinks a few times before he can move again, and then he’s by Loki’s side immediately.

“Is he okay?”, he asks breathlessly, and Loki takes his sweet ass time answering, still clinging to his son as if he’s afraid the kid will just vanish any second now.

Out of the corner of his eye, he sees Bruce moving forward as well. Loki does, too, and when the good Doctor reaches out, he pulls back with a snarl, actually bearing his teeth. Which is probably not the best in front of _that guy_ , but Bruce doesn’t seem faced. Instead, he simply lifts both hands and takes a step back.

“Sorry. I just wanted to quickly check him over, make sure he’s alright. Would you be okay with that?”

Loki doesn’t look all that inclined to let _anyone_ touch his kid, let alone the man who pounded him into Tony’s beautiful marble floor no longer than three hours ago, but there must be something about Bruce that gives him pause. After a few seconds of consideration, he slowly nods, and allows the good Doctor to step closer once again. Tony’s watching the check up anxiously, because that was one fucking scary scene just now, and he would be surprised if the kid made it through that hell without any damage. To his immense relief, though, Bruce pulls back less than a minute later, smiling gently.

“He’s okay. Just exhausted, it seems. But I can’t find anything wrong with him.”

“Thank fuck”, Tony mutters, dragging a hand through his hair, because--

Because he doesn’t really want to think about what would happen if that kid got seriously hurt. Again. Right after they actually managed to prevent yet another prison sentence. Loki nods as Bruce steps back again, cradling Fenrir against his chest as straightens once again.

“It is the binding that has taken all of his remaining strength. Sealing his magic was no small feat, and it will take him a while to recover. He will most likely sleep away a few days, or even a week. But it is done now”, he continues as he turns towards Odin with a dark glare, “I left him enough to keep him alive, but not enough for him to shift, or harm anyone in any way.”

Right now, the kid looks like he wouldn’t even be able to stand up on his own two legs in the next few hours (or days, if Loki’s right, which he most likely is), so there’s no protest from anyone. Odin only gives a curt nod, and then--

Then there’s nothing left to do. This is it, Tony can tell. Still, it’s strange to watch Loki turn towards him, eyes filled with nothing but grief and sorrow as he looks at him. All of a sudden, his throat grows dry, and his lungs feel empty, and Tony doesn’t want to be here. He wants- He wants to wake up. He wants to have been asleep, and to wake up and find out that his life is still a lot less weird and bizarre. That doesn’t happen, of course. Instead, he takes a step forward, and opens up his arms.

“It’s okay. I got him.”

He can tell that Loki’s heart breaks at that, but he doesn’t show it. Slowly, he carefully, he shifts the unconscious kid, and then carefully places him into Tony’s arms, before pulling his hands back. And just like that, it’s Tony holding the kid close to his chest.

First thing he notices: Fenrir’s a lot lighter than he expected. Probably has to do with the fact that he hasn’t eaten all that much over the last two weeks, and he’s weirdly glad about that, since he’s pretty sure he wouldn’t be able to hold the kid as effortlessly as he does now. Second thing: Kid’s warm, and it’s- Weird, to feel that warmth seep through his clothes and into his skin, warming him to the core in an entirely new way. Third thing: The boy might be unconscious, but he still seems to press just a little closer, pressing his nose against Tony’s neck, letting out a small sigh. He’s a cuddly one. Then again, Tony already kind of knew that.

Looking back up, he almost loses it at the sight of Loki’s face, because- There’s just so much sadness, so much grief and desperation, and yet there’s still a smile, small and watery as it might be. It’s directed at Fenrir it first, but then the god looks up, and straight into Tony’s eyes, making him swallow nervously.

“Promise me that you will take care of him. That you will protect him, no matter what happens. I have to leave now, and the only thing I need to know is that my son will be as safe he as he can be. Safe, and... Loved, if it will one day be possible.”

Tony feels his head grow empty, heart pounding against his ribs as his grip tightens around the child in his arms. There’s a ringing in his ears, and his knees are shaking, and the feeling’s not that different from those damn panic attacks, and he’s sweating and trembling and feeling like he’s going to pass out any second now. But just then, Fenrir lets out a small, sleepy sound, and there’s that warmth washing away the cold feeling of dread, and all of a sudden it’s easy to answer.

“I promise, Loki. Like I said: He won’t be alone. I’ll make sure of that.”

Loki smiles at that, warm and bright and actually full of hope, and it leaves Tony speechless. No one has ever smiled at him this way, and he has never given anyone a reason to look like that. But here they are, and even if all of this has been a fucking nightmare, Tony can’t help but think that in a way, it’s all been worth it.

“There are no words in any language that would ever let me express just how grateful I am. So, let me put it simply: Thank you, Stark, from the bottom of my heart. And I hope that one day, I will find a way to pay my debt.”

“Not a debt, you know. Nothing to pay back”, Tony mutters as he shifts the boy a little into a hopefully more comfortable position, “I’ll look after him. Not just for you- I’m doing it for him. Because he’s a good kid, and he deserves a good life.”

“Yes. Yes, he does. And I hope he will have it, now.”

Taking a deep breath, Loki leans forward, pressing a kiss to Fenrir’s forehead, before whispering into his ear.

“I love you so much, Fenrir. And I always will. I hope you live a wonderful life, my sweet little wolf. And I will see again, somehow. Until then... Farewell.”

Loki pulls back, tears streaming down his face, but he doesn’t acknowledge them as he turns around,and starts walking towards the Asgardians awaiting him. Two of them step forward, put handcuffs and a muzzle on him, and then take both of his arm in a tight hold as they all gather together, stepping close to Odin. The Allfather looks at Tony for one more second, and this time he gives in and gives the old monster the finger.

One moment later, the sky opens up, and a beam of light crashes down onto the street, enveloping the small crowd with deafening commotion. Tony narrows his eyes, but doesn’t close them as he stares right into the light, and into Loki’s bright green eyes. The god is looking back at him, gagged and bound, but there’s no hatred, anger or fear in his gaze. Instead, it’s an expression Tony wasn’t expecting at all: Peace, acceptance and relief. And then, the light vanishes, and they’re gone. All that’s left is some burned tarmac, and the sleeping boy in his arms.

Tony takes a shuddering breath as he looks down, studying the kid’s sleeping form. There he is, now, the kid he agreed to take care of from now on. His responsibility, the biggest one he’s ever had. And here and now, more or less alone and on his own, he can’t help but think--

_What the fuck have I done?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also, you might have noticed there's one more chapter to come than I previously thought. I was thinking about adding that conversation between Loki and Fenrir, but I'll see about that.
> 
> Have a nice day, and I hope you're as happy and healthy as can be!


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, this went completely differently than I planned, but I'm okay with that. This is the last chapter, because I think it's a good point to end this installment. This has been a lot of fun (and a challenge, too), and I'm happy that people have stuck around until now and are still enjoying it! Again, I'd love to hear your opinion, comments and kudos make my day :)
> 
> Hope you enjoy!
> 
> Love,  
> Goldie

_It was a rather special night, the night that Fenrir was born. Even though it was night time, the world had not darkened yet, and there was no sign it would on that very day. Instead, the sky had filled with dark, grey clouds that lazily drifted throughout the realm, blanketing any sort of light of darkness that might shine through. A cold, whispering wind raced through the sky, and then fell down, whipping over the wide fields, cutting through the soft, golden grass, and curling himself around Loki, who was hurrying away from the castle, the hood of his dark blue cape pulled deeply into his face._

_Of course,_ _Angrboda had once again waited to the very last moment before she sent one of her messengers, kindly letting him know that his child was to be born any second now! Loki cursed his own stupidity for believing she would send for him any sooner. He should have stayed with her, no matter wether she did not want him to! Angrboda was nothing if not as stubborn as Loki himself, and while he used to admire her strength and determination, those attributes can be tiring at times. Like tonight, when he has to fear he will miss the birth of his own child! Slowing down for a second, the god takes a deep breath as he squints through the wind, and the icy rain that has started to fall just moments ago. A cold, stormy night... Not unlike the night of his own birth, if Frigga is to be believed. Still, it is something entirely different as well. Almost as if the skies cannot make up their minds about-- There! The cave is well hidden, almost invisible behind the first line of looming trees. Loki feels his heart pounding against his ribs, and a joy unlike any other rise up in his chest. Not much longer now! Shaking off the hood, Loki quickens his pace as he makes his way towards the edge of the fields, closer and closer towards the forest. Not much longer now, and he will meet his child, and the happiness that warms him to the core almost threatens to burn him alive--_

_Just as he is about to step in between the trees, something moves in front of him. Something giant, something full of strength, and Loki slows down immediately, breathing deeply. They will know, of course. He has long ago given up on trying to fool them in any way. If anything, he has learned that they do not appreciate any sort of manipulation of dishonesty, and Loki does not want to anger them now. And so, he does not try to craft a mask, does not try to hide his jittery excitement, and simply lifts his head to look into the giant wolf’s eyes._

_To his dismay, he realizes a moment later that he has come face to face with Skali, a giant wolf with dark grey wolf with piercing, light blue eyes, who has never made any secret of his dislike of Loki. Now, Skali is moving forward, the ground trembling under his huge paws as he moves to lean over the god, gazing down at him with those deep, searching eyes that always make Loki feel as though he is not welcome at. He isn’t, he knows. But the feeling is still rather uncomfortable._

**_Loki._ **

_The wolf’s deep, rumbling voice vibrates through Loki’s head, gripping him tightly and instilling a strange, unique sort of fear. Skali would have little trouble tearing him to pieces, and Loki suspects the wolf would not mind doing so._

_“Skali”, he replies lowly, bowing his head just slightly._

_The wolf scoffs at that, but does not back away, leaning even closer, until Loki feels the beast’s hot breath on his skin. He does not dare to move as the wolf takes in his scent in deep, slow breaths, growling lowly as he does so._

**_You smell of those hiding away in the Palace. The Aesir._ **

_“I know. I was reading in the library when Angrboda’s raven reached me.”_

**_She should not have sent for you._ **

_“It is my child that will be born tonight, Skali. I want to see it.”_

_The wolf growls again, even angrier this time as pulls back his lips and bares his long, blindingly white teeth. Loki shudders at their sight, but he does not back away. He knows all too well that Skali would not forgive him cowardice, and neither would Angrboda. Wolves have a peculiar way of forcing their opponent to show their bravery. But Loki has learned, and he knows to wait now, and not run away, or even strike._

**_The child of someone of your kind... A cursed child it will be... Not a wolf, not a man... Much like yourself, little god. And just as cursed and lost._ **

_Loki flinches at that. Skali has never held back with his opinion, and as one Angrboda’s closest and most trusted allies, his opinion matters a lot more than he would like. Still, Loki knows better than to try and fight the wolf on this matter. He is not entirely wrong about Loki himself, but the god can’t help and hope that he will be entirely wrong about the child’s fate._

**_You should not be here._ **

_“I want to see my child!”, Loki hisses, daring to lift his head and glare into those bright blue eyes, “she sent for me, and I am here! You have no right to keep me from my family!”_

**_Your family... You truly think that she would ever choose you over your pack. Do not be a fool, little god. Angrboda knows where she belongs. And you should know for yourself as well._ **

_This time, Loki shies back as the giant wolf leans down to stare right into his face, black nose twitching, as he bares his teeth yet again, and growls deeply. Skali could kill, and he looks as though he is planning on doing just that, if only to keep the god from entering the cave he is guarding. But Loki is no coward, either, and so he forces himself to look back up and glare at the angry beast._

_“You no right to keep me from her. And even less to keep my child! Think of me what you will, but it is not your pup that will be born tonight. So step aside, Skali, and let me see my family!”_

_For a moment, the giant wolf looks as though will simply open his maw and bite off Loki’s head, and be done with it all. But just as the god is about back away, the wolf huffs and shakes his head, before slowly stepping aside. Loki breathes a small sigh of relief and then hurries towards the cave._

**_You are too late. The pup has already been born, Loki._ **

_And Loki knows that Skali only tells him so to hurt him, but it does not work. Instead of anger and disappointment, he feels that same joy burn through his body once again, and his heart clenches painfully with happiness and anticipation. Without looking back towards the giant beast again, he steps into the cave, taking a moment to brush strands of wet hair out of his face, before quietly walking forward._

_There she is, no longer in the form of a wolf, at the back of the cave. Loki hesitates when he sees that Angrboda is leaning against yet another wolf’s flank, but feels relief when he recognizes Hati’s deep black fur, and his warm, light brown eyes squinting at him in a friendly way. As he slowly walks closer, the Hati carefully gets up onto his paws, nudging Angrboda’s cheek one last time and licking at the small bundle in his arms, before quietly walking towards Loki. The god tenses when the wolf comes to a halt in front of him, but Hati only smiles, bearing his teeth in a somehow different, almost gentle way, blinking as he lowers his head to nudge the god’s chest gently. Loki has come to value Hati’s affection and care, and he does not hesitate before bending his head as well, waiting as the wolf slowly trots out of the cave, finally leaving him alone with his family. And then, they are finally alone, and Loki hurries towards Angrboda- And his child._

_She smiles softly at him as he lowers to his knees beside her, accepting his kiss, before leaning against his side and letting out a sigh._

_“You came.”_

_“Did you truly doubt I would?”_

_“No, my love. I knew you would be here the moment I sent for you. But still...”_

_Loki is barely able to listen as he gazes down at the small bundle in her arms, his heart almost beating out of his chest. She notices, of course, and simply opens her arms a bit wider, revealing more of the precious little creature resting in her lap. It’s the tiniest pup Loki has ever seen, with soft, white-grey fur, tiny ears, and a tiny, twitching, black nose. Everything about the pup is tiny, and Loki is almost afraid of touching it, afraid of breaking something in the delicate body. As Angrboda starts to pull her hands away, it starts to tremble whining at first, then starts to cry out softly, and Loki feels his heart clench at the sound. Before he can think about it, he is already reaching out, brushing a finger over the pup’s head, down his back, smiling at the feeling of that soft, downy fur against his skin. Without a conscious thought he wraps his hands around the tiny creature, and lifts his child up, cradling it against his chest and curling himself around the pup._

_Something inside of him - Deep down, in his very core - shift. Some pieces align themselves, and a warmth, a calm settles over him as he breathes deeply, inhaling the pup’s sweet scent, carefully brushing a single finger through the soft tufts of white-grey fur._

_“Beautiful, isn’t he?”_

_Again, his heart trembles, and Loki looks up at Angrboda with an unbelieving smile._

_“A boy?”_

_“Yes, Loki. A boy”, she replies as she leans her head against his shoulder._

_He cannot believe it, and yet he already knows it to be true without a single doubt. Looking back down, he notices that the pup has already calmed down again, snuggling into his chest as he starts to nibble at his tunic, tiny paws stretching, black nose twitching. He can feel his child’s- His son’s heartbeat under thumping against his thumb, and it settles something in his mind._

_“This one will be yours.”_

_“Hm? What do you mean, love?”_

_“Skali told me”, she replies with a small smile, “that this pup will be yours. He will come after me - A wolf, a wild child - but he will be yours, in the end.”_

_“Do you think that Skali... That everything he says ends up coming true?”_

_She hesitates, and for a moment there is no other sound but the wind tearing at the forest, yet still whispering things Loki does not understand and does not want to know, either. Then, she reaches over to brush a gentle hand over the pup’s back, scratching behind his ears as he yawns._

_“He- Has a way of knowing these kinds of things.”_

_“Then you know what else he believes to be true about our child?”_

_“Perhaps. But good would it do us to think about a future that might never come to pass, Loki? I know you well. You are worried.”_

_“How could I not be? With everything he has said--”_

_“You forget that Skali is not the only wolf who sees these things”, Angrboda interrupts with yet another small smile, “and yes, the things he has seen may sound... Frightening. But Hati has confided in me as well, and he has seen much different things for our son.”_

_“Such as?”_

_“That he will be filled with love and brightness. That he will lead a life full of wonder, and find a pack of his own - A strong family, people who truly care for him. And that he will be free, living without chains or bounds.”_

_“You believe that--”_

_“I do, Loki. Our son will have a good life, I am sure of it. And no matter what danger might come his way, I know that he will never be alone. The pack will be there to protect him, and you- I know you would tear down all the nine realms in order to protect him”, she adds as she leans over and presses her lips against Loki’s cheek, “do not worry so much, my dear. He has only just been born, there is no evil waiting for him now!”_

_Loki nods as he sits down on the cool ground, careful to not shift the pup too much as it has fallen asleep in his arms. Of course, she is right. There is no reason to worry just yet, as the little one has just arrived, and is safe and warm in his father’s arms. Letting out a sigh, Loki shakes his head and smiles as he looks down at his son, feeling love and happiness well up in chest, almost threatening to burn him alive. He has felt this kind of love before, but somehow.. Somehow this time it is different. Breathing deeply, he curls himself around the small creature, leaning back so that he can rest the pup on his chest, gazing at his son’s sleeping face, chuckling whenever the small, black nose twitches in his sleep._

_“Yes. He truly is beautiful.”_

_“A gorgeous little wolf”, Angrboda sighs as she presses herself against Loki’s side, “he will be a stunning creature once he grows up. And I believe he will have my eyes.”_

_“Oh? We will see about that, then!”_

_“Yes, we will. But he will have my eyes, love, I already know.”_

_Loki chuckles again as he scratches behind the pup’s ears with a single finger, halting his movements when he feels his son shudder under the caress. No more than a few minutes have passed, and he is already fallen in love. And here, on top of his chest, lies the new love of his life, sleeping peacefully._

_“Have you decided on a name yet?”, he asks softly, as he knows that he won’t be allowed to make that decision._

_Angrboda has reserved the right to name their son a long time ago, as she does not trust Loki to choose a good name for a wolf. The god does not begrudge her for it. He feels too much love to even consider any other emotion._

_“Yes. I want to name him Fenrir.”_

_Loki hums lowly, leaning forward to press a kiss to the pup’s forehead, smiling when the little one grumbles lowly at that, snuggling down into his chest once again. Yes, this one... He can tell that at least one part of what Skali told them will come true. This one will be his._

_“Fenrir... I like it a lot, my love. It is the perfect name for a little wolf like yourself”, he whispers into his son’s soft, white-grey ear, “and I already love you so much, my beloved Fenrir. And that will never change, no matter what happens. I will always love you, with all my heart.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So. Next installment won't be quite as long, I'm estimating around 10.000 - 15.000 words. With my current pace, that shouldn't take me much longer than 3-5 days to write and edit, so it should be up before the end of next week. And after that, I'll finally be able to post something I've been working on for months. I hope to see you then!


End file.
